Ronnie O’Sullivan fears ‘pretty pointless’ future after Zhao Xintong mauling

Ronnie O’Sullivan fears that his snooker future will be ‘pretty pointless’ if he continues to play as he did in a crushing World Championship semi-final defeat to Zhao Xintong.

The Rocket was heavily beaten 17-7 by the Chinese star, looking a huge distance from his best for the vast majority of the game.

The 49-year-old was playing with a new cue in this tournament and since arriving in Sheffield has changed his tip three times and his ferrule from titanium to brass.

O’Sullivan was not looking to blame the cue, necessarily, but remains baffled over his level of performance.

‘I’m at a loss to be honest with you,’ he said. ‘I have lost what I used to have. I’m so confused. It feels really a struggle.

‘I don’t know if it was me, the cue tip or the ferrule. I didn’t know where the white ball was going.’

On the surprisingly one-sided result, he said: ‘I wasn’t surprised. I have been playing like that in practice. It’s hard to get my head around. I can’t even fix it, that’s the problem, I don’t know if I can fix it.

‘I want to give it two years but if you play like that, it’s pretty pointless. It’s not good.

‘I have been like that for four years, trying to grind it out. I haven’t had a clue where the cue ball was going. I have been willing it in the hole.

‘I don’t know how to correct the fault. That is the worrying thing. I am so far away – I don’t even know where to begin.’

Zhao was keen to whip up a round of applause for O’Sullivan after the final ball was potted, but the Rocket wanted to give the winner his moment after an epic victory.

‘We’ve got a really nice relationship,’ said O’Sullivan. ‘I’m always trying to help him if I can and he wanted the crowd to give me a clap at the end but it was Zhao’s moment so I tried to get off as quickly as I could because it was his moment.’

He added: ‘He played great, you’ve got to give credit where it’s due, he was the better player in the whole match.

‘He can definitely get over the line, I think he’ll have more of a test against the other two guys in the semis. I think that will be a proper test for him.’

Next up for Zhao will be Judd Trump or Mark Williams in the final, with the second semi-final coming to a close on Saturday evening and the final beginning on Sunday.

It gives the first-time finalist a day off to rest while Trump and Williams battle it out over the next two sessions after finishing their second at 8-8.

Zhao played brilliantly, making three centuries and 12 more half-centuries as he blew away the Rocket, taking advantage of the veteran who was well below par, struggling with changes to his cue and a long search for his best form.

The finalist hailed a man he considers his idol, saying he did not believe he could win the match before a ball was struck.

‘I can’t believe that,’ said Zhao. ‘I need to say big thanks to Ronnie because he helped me a lot before. If Ronnie didn’t help I think that I’d not be here.

‘He’s my idol. I know I needed to play well because before the match I didn’t think I could win the match.

‘This is my first time to play the single table at the Crucible, I just wanted to try to enjoy the table and play like an exhibition.

‘I played with Ronnie so no pressure. He’s a legend. Everyone wants him to win this tournament, I can feel that. I needed to concentrate and control myself. I did that.’