Ronnie O’Sullivan is the 'favourite' for 2026 World Snooker Championship at the Crucible, according to Jimmy White
By Ben Morse
Updated 25/03/2026 at 14:35 GMT
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Ronnie O'Sullivan's improving form has him among the favourites at the 2026 World Snooker Championship, according to Jimmy White. O’Sullivan looked impressive as he reached the final of the 2026 World Open in March, eventually losing to Thepchaiya Un-Nooh in a high-level contest in Yushan, China. On a sensational run to the showpiece, O'Sullivan made a history-making 153 break.
‘What a story’ - Un-Nooh 'stuns' O’Sullivan to become World Open champion
Video credit: TNT Sports
Snooker legend Jimmy White says he thinks that Ronnie O’Sullivan is the ”favourite” to win this year’s World Snooker Championship.
O’Sullivan looked impressive as he reached the final of the 2026 World Open in March, eventually losing to Thepchaiya Un-Nooh in a high-level contest in China.
And White believes that his recent displays put him amongst the top contenders for the world title, with the event beginning on April 18 at the Crucible in Sheffield.
”Before these last few events, you thought he had a chance. Now, you’ve got to make him favourite because he’s playing superbly,” White told TNT Sports. ”So I think we will see Ronnie win his eighth world title.”
O’Sullivan looked back to his best in Yushan, putting in some assured performances.
The standout of those came in the quarter-finals when the 50-year-old compiled a history-making 153 break.
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WATCH IN FULL - Every pot from O'Sullivan's history-making break of 153
Video credit: TNT Sports
Although his tournament eventually ended in defeat, it reaffirmed the idea that O’Sullivan remains amongst the best players in snooker when he is on form.
O’Sullivan has not officially confirmed that he will take part in the World Championships, but has said he "probably" would.
He revealed after his World Open final defeat that he had not planned to compete for a record eighth title in Sheffield amid worries over his game, but changed his mind after a "positive week" in Yushan.
"I can only take one day, one week at a time," he said. "I can’t look any further than a week at the moment, with my career.
"I’ve not been playing for a reason, just because I haven’t had a game good enough to compete. So I’ve been trying to find that on the practice table and hopefully bring it to the match table.
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"I’ve had quite a good year, really. I felt like I played really quite good at the start of the season, better than I was, and then I had a dip for a couple of months. January and February weren’t good, and I thought, 'Here we go,' but I’ve managed to pull it back a little bit.
"We’ll just see how it goes. I wasn’t even going to play in the World Championship 10 days ago because I was too scared. I felt like I would embarrass myself.
"But now I feel I probably will go, because I feel like I might pot a few balls. It’s not great. I’m not in a great, great place with it, but I’m better than I was maybe two weeks ago."
Watch and stream the 2025/26 snooker season, including the World Championship, live on TNT Sports and HBO Max
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