Steve Davis names ‘weakest performer’ so far of World Snooker Championship quarter-finalists

Steve Davis says Ronnie O’Sullivan’s quarter-final opponent Si Jiahui has been the weakest performer of the remaining players at the Crucible so far this year.

The line-up for the last eight sees the Rocket take on Si, Zhao Xintong meet Chris Wakelin, John Higgins play Mark Williams and Luca Brecel face Judd Trump.

It is a fascinating set of quarter-finals, with five former champions and three players who are trying to conquer the Crucible for the first time.

Si is one of those who has not lifted the famous trophy before, although he has gone as far as the semi-finals, when he was beaten by Brecel in 2023.

The 22-year-old has a fantastic Crucible record already, making that semi-final on debut and then beating Mark Williams on his second visit to the theatre last year.

He is back in the quarter-finals after wins over Dave Gilbert and Ben Woollaston, but Davis does not think he has hit top form just yet.

In fact, of the eight remaining players, the six-time world champion feels Si has played the worst so far.

‘On paper, so far, I think the weakest performer has been Si Jiahui,’ Davis said on the BBC. ‘So Ronnie has got arguably the person who hasn’t actually turned up and played to strength yet. But who’s to say? You never know.’

Si will not be offended by the review, saying his 13-10 win over Woollaston in the last round was his worst ever performance at the Crucible.

‘I think I had some problems aiming the cue ball, so I wasn’t feeling confident on long pots. It put me under some pressure but I’m really happy I won this game,’ he said.

‘I think it’s the worst match I have played at the Crucible ever. I think my opponent was not performing at his best.’

Davis was talking up the rest of the quarter-final line-up, especially the performances of Zhao and Wakelin so far, who the Nugget says have played ‘astonishingly well’ on the way to their first World Championship quarter-finals.

‘We’ve got the two juggernauts playing each other, John Higgins and Mark Williams, everyone is licking their lips for that,’ said Davis.

‘Chris Wakelin vs Zhao Xintong, those two players have played astonishingly well so far this tournament. There’s no hiding place anymore.’

O’Sullivan is certainly not taking Si lightly, regardless of how he has played so far, knowing the talent that the young Chinese star possesses.

Si beat the Rocket in the quarter-finals of the Saudi Arabia Masters this season and left an impression on the seven-time world champion.

‘This is a big acid test because he does score,’ said O’Sullivan. ‘The players I played in the first two rounds had enough chances to put me away but they haven’t, but I think this guy will.

‘He buried me in Saudi Arabia this year. I was scrapping but his scoring power was too much for me.’

The quarter-finals are all over two sessions played on Tuesday and Wednesday.