The seven-time champion Ronnie O’Sullivan is out of the World Snooker Championship after shedding 13-10 to Luca Brecel of their Crucible quarter-final.
O’Sullivan, resuming 10–6 forward, misplaced seven frames at the spin as Brecel reached the ultimate 4 in strange cases. O’Sullivan, who will win the identify in 2022, did not make a unmarried destroy over 30 as his Belgian opponent arrange a semi-final date with both Anthony McGill or Si Jiahui.
O’Sullivan informed the BBC: “I didn’t put up any resistance but you’ve still got to pot the balls and he played unbelievable. I wasn’t playing well enough to have any impact on the game. If it was a boxing match they would have stopped it very early on. I was just pinching frames and hanging on. There’s only so much hanging on you can do at the Crucible. It catches up with you at some point, and someone will eventually put you away.”
Brecel said: “I always play the same game so it’s not a surprise to me. I have a ‘B’ game but I never choose to play it. I love winning but I don’t mind losing and that’s a dangerous combination to have.”
Earlier, Mark Allen reached the last four for just the second time in his career with a hard-fought win over qualifier Jak Jones. Allen was far from his fluent best and made just one break over 70, but took advantage of a nervous display in the final session from debutant Jones to secure a 13-10 victory.
“It was never in doubt was it?” joked a relieved Allen, who first reached the semis in 2009. “It was once an entire slog to be fair. The first consultation was once actually just right however I used to be terrible after that and it was once only a topic of digging deep, seeking to keep as sure as imaginable and seeking to get 13 frames. That’s what I did.
Asked what were the deciding issue, Allen mentioned: “The safety [department] in the end. We both missed balls. I felt like as the match went on he was getting more edgy but I wasn’t playing well enough to capitalise, so it was just a matter of staying patient and taking my chances when they came.
“It wasn’t pretty, I’m sure it wasn’t pretty to watch but I couldn’t care less. I’m in the semis. I don’t mean this to sound bad to Jak, but that was like a three or four out of 10 performance. That really wasn’t good. But mentally I was like a 12 out of 10 and ready for anything. Sometimes that’s more important and that’s a match I would have lost a few years ago.”