Ronnie O'Sullivan rates chances of winning record eighth World Snooker Championship title before showdown with John Higgins - 'Nothing’s impossible'

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Ronnie O'Sullivan is adamant that "nothing's impossible" as he continues his latest quest for a record eighth world title at the age of 50.

'Can be a really stressful thing' - O'Sullivan explains changing cues in first-round win

Video credit: TNT Sports

O'Sullivan became the oldest world champion in Crucible history at the age of 46 when he defeated Judd Trump 18-13 in the 2022 world final in Sheffield.

The Essex man would break that record by four years if he can overtake fellow seven-time winner Stephen Hendry as the most prolific world champion of the modern era.

In completing a 10-2 win from leading He Guoqiang 7-2 overnight on Tuesday, the snooker GOAT produced majestic breaks of 113, 113, 100, 97, 86, 72, 62 and 52 in easing through to the second round.

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But the world No. 12 feels he will find out more about the state of his game when he faces fellow 'Class of '92' icon John Higgins in their best-of-25 battle on Saturday, Sunday and Monday in the last 16.

”It’s hard, because I haven’t played enough top players regularly to know,” O’Sullivan said.

”It was hard, but I need to improve. I’m still a bit rusty, obviously we’ll have to wait and see. Nothing’s impossible.”

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O'Sullivan won the last of his 41 ranking titles with a 10-7 win over Trump at the World Grand Prix in January 2024.

Despite picking and choosing his events this season, competing in only seven ranking tournaments, he has reached two finals, losing 10-9 to Neil Robertson in the Saudi Arabia Masters final and 10-7 to Thepchaiya Un-Nooh in last month's World Open title match.

”I’m quite happy being in this situation,” he said. "If you told me I’d be here, not favourite to win but maybe sixth or seventh favourite and enjoying the game, I’d say: ‘Yeah, great.'

”It’s harder to go in with both feet and put your whole life into it, because you’re not sure if you’re going to get the wins.

"That’s why I do little stints now. I just want to enjoy myself and not be a slave to the game.”

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He played with two cues in his victory against world No. 47 He, a ploy that brought back memories of comments made about old foe Shaun Murphy using more than one cue during the 2023 Northern Ireland Open.

Murphy opted to deploy multiple cues at Belfast's Waterfront Hall to accommodate deteriorating table conditions before losing 4-2 to Chris Wakelin in the fourth round.

”Have three cues if you’re winning, but when you keep getting pumped it don’t look good, does it?” O’Sullivan told TNT Sports at the time.

”So start winning some matches before you start doing that.”

Murphy hit back at the criticism, saying: "I didn’t understand what the joke was. I thought it was a bit of a cheap shot.

”I didn’t understand what he meant. Because as you’ve said, I won three or four matches last week in Belfast – I’d taken multiple cues into the arena every time I walked out to play."

It looks like O'Sullivan, whose other title wins came in 2001, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2013 and 2022, has pursued similar tactics as he bids to extract as much consistency as possible from his cue action.

”My cue was hopeless yesterday," he said.

"It was only because I’m feeling all right that I was able to get away with it. I felt like I could play the shots that I like today.

"It was stuck under my bed in Ireland, basically, for most of the year until I came here.”

O'Sullivan and Higgins are locked at three wins apiece in Crucible meetings, with Higgins 80-76 ahead on frames won since their first meeting in the 1996 quarter-finals when O'Sullivan edged an epic 13-12.