Ronnie O'Sullivan feels he is 'hanging on for dear life' at World Snooker Championship 2025 ahead of Si Jiahui clash in Crucible quarter-finals
Published 28/04/2025 at 21:07 GMT+1
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Ronnie O'Sullivan is into the quarter-finals of the World Championship at the Crucible, where he will meet Si Jiahui. Despite comprehensive wins in his opening two matches, O'Sullivan fears he will be found wanting as the level increases. Watch and stream top snooker action, including the World Championship, live and on demand on TNT Sports and discovery+.
'I expected my opponent to play better' - O'Sullivan feels Pang scoreline flattered him
Video credit: TNT Sports
Ronnie O’Sullivan says he is "hanging on for dear life" at the World Championship.
The seven-time winner breezed into the quarter-finals with a 13-4 win over Pang Junxu, which backed up his victory over Ali Carter in round one.
O’Sullivan suggested his second session against Carter was as good as he had felt in years, but he said following his win over Pang that he had "butchered" the majority of shots that he played.
Despite that, he set up a quarter-final meeting with Si Jiahui - with the action getting underway on TNT Sports and discovery+ on Tuesday afternoon.
Reflecting on his win over Pang in an interview with TNT Sports, O’Sullivan said: "It was alright.
"I expected my opponent to play better, but he didn’t and he let me off the hook a lot of times, so the scoreline probably looked better than it was. It did not feel like a 13-4."
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O'Sullivan wraps up 'comprehensive' win over Pang
Video credit: TNT Sports
Asked how he was cueing in the second round, O’Sullivan replied: "Not great, but trying. That is all you can do.
"There were like 500 shots there, and like 480 would have been butchered - in my own judgement."
O'Sullivan has sports psychiatrist Steve Peters in his corner, and he admitted to struggling mentally on Sunday.
"My head was good, considering what was going through my mind," he said. "I just wanted to run out there.
"At the start of yesterday afternoon I thought, ‘This is going to be a long day’. But I kind of found something, and it pepped me up a little bit."
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O’Sullivan - who returned to action at the Crucible for the first time in a ranking event since November - feels the tournament begins at the quarter-final stage, and suggested any shortcomings in his game would be found out.
"I don't feel rusty, I don’t feel anything," he said. "I just expect to make mistakes.
"I haven’t and it’s probably not as bad as I am talking here, but it feels like it could be that bad. I am hanging on for dear life.
"I know I am going to get found out from here on inwards. This will be the real test. From now on we will see the standard rise and I am not sure I can go with it, but we will soon find out."
Despite being concerned about the state of his game, O’Sullivan offered a ray of hope to his supporters.
"I have always had a philosophy that if I am playing well it does not matter who is in the other chair," the 49-year-old said. "I still believe that now.
"If I am struggling and I turn it on it does not matter. That is my belief."
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