Ronnie O'Sullivan holds another strange World Snooker Championship record as Zhao Xintong tries to end 'Crucible Curse' in historic title defence
Published 28/03/2026 at 11:06 GMT
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China's first world champion Zhao Zintong will try to become the Crucible's first maiden winner to retain the sport's biggest prize in Sheffield next month. Zhao defeated Mark Williams 18-12 as only the fourth qualifier of the modern era to claim the trophy, but can he finally break the 'Crucible Curse' this year? The World Championship is live on TNT Sports and HBO Max between April 18-4 May.
Air Xintong! Zhao pulls off stunning pot while holding rest above table
Video credit: TNT Sports
When Terry Griffiths lost 13-10 to Steve Davis in the second round of the 1980 World Championship, the late Welsh great probably did not know he was triggering a bizarre sequence of results which would still be running 46 years later.
The 'Crucible Curse' has become part of modern snooker folklore as much as the iconic figures to adorn the Sheffield venue since 1977, with no maiden winner managing to retain the old trophy a year later.
The players to fall victim to the hoary old 'Curse' reads like a Who's Who of the professional game with Stephen Hendry, Steve Davis, Cliff Thorburn, Ronnie O'Sullivan, Mark Williams and John Higgins all failing in their quest to break the odd hoodoo.
Only two players, Joe Johnson in 1987 and Ken Doherty in 1998, have managed to reach the final a year after becoming world champion at the sport's greatest event.
Johnson lost 18-14 to Steve Davis a year after stunning the six-time winner 18-12 as a 150-1 outsider in 1986, while Doherty lost 18-12 to John Higgins in 1998 after defeating Hendry by the same scoreline in the 1997 final.
Top seed Zhao Xintong will become the 21st player over the past five decades to attempt to break the curse when the hallowed venue hosts the 50th World Championship, live on TNT Sports and HBO Max between April 18-May 4.
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'Oh my goodness, that is absolutely sensational' - Zhao nails stunning plant
Video credit: TNT Sports
He will do so in the knowledge that the Crucible has historically become a graveyard of broken dreams for maiden winners.
Three-time Crucible semi-finalist Alan McManus feels it will be tough for the 28-year-old to defend his title a year after he became only the fourth qualifier after Alex Higgins (1972), Griffiths (1979) and Shaun Murphy (2005) to go all the way.
"Without mentioning the curse, it was a perfect storm last year," said McManus on TNT Sports.
"All those pre-Crucible matches in qualifying, he was red-hot. Maybe not quite as hot this year, but still good."
Ronnie O'Sullivan will make a record-extending 34th straight appearance at this year's event in his quest for a record stand-alone eighth title, having produced the most centuries (214) of any player at the venue.
He also holds the most wins at the Crucible, 81 from 107 outings, the fastest 147 in history (five minutes and eight seconds) and has made three 147s in Sheffield, a total matched only by Hendry.
But he also holds another strange record in relation to the 'Crucible Curse' in being the last first-time winner to reach the fabled one-table set-up in Sheffield a year later.
After lifting the first of his seven with an 18-14 win over Higgins in 2001, he was denied 17-13 by fellow seven-time winner Hendry at the semi-final stage in 2002.
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'Very special moment!' - Watch O'Sullivan create history with highest ever professional break of 153
Video credit: TNT Sports
Since O'Sullivan's defeat, only Peter Ebdon (2003), Murphy (2006) and Judd Trump (2020) have reached the quarter-finals in their respective title defences, traditionally the round before the venue loses the dividing wall to become a one-table set-up for the semi-finals and final.
Alex Higgins won his first Crucible title in 1982, a decade after lifting the title in Manchester, but lost 16-5 to Davis in the 1983 semi-finals.
Indeed, only Thorburn in 1981 and John Higgins in 1999 have made the last four a year after becoming champion.
But no maiden winner has been back to the one-table set-up since O'Sullivan 24 years ago.
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Meanwhile, the 12-player Tour Championship gets underway in Manchester on Monday with new World Open champion Thepchaiya Un-Nooh facing Barry Hawkins and world No. 1 Trump taking on Mark Allen.
O'Sullivan has opted out of this year's tournament with his 10-7 defeat to Thepchaiya Un-Nooh in Sunday's final of the World Open, his last competitive action before the World Championship gets underway at Sheffield's Crucible Theatre (April 18 to May 4).
Zhao, who has won the World Grand Prix, Riyadh Season Championship and Players Championship this season, is the second seed and will take on the winner of Wu Yize or Chris Wakelin, a best-of-19 frame match that takes place over Monday and Tuesday.
Watch and stream the 2025/26 snooker season, including the 50th World Championship, live on TNT Sports and HBO Max
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