Ronnie O'Sullivan's search for form and Zhao Xintong's quest to break Crucible Curse - What to look out for in season's final events
Published 03/03/2026 at 08:46 GMT
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The business end of the snooker season is approaching, with the World Championship now on the horizon, and there are plenty of talking points to look out for in the remaining weeks of the campaign. Zhao Xintong will aim to break the 'Crucible Curse' and defend his maiden title in Sheffield, while there is uncertainty surrounding Ronnie O'Sullivan as he gears up to target an eighth world triumph.
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While there are only three tournaments left on the calendar this season, there is still plenty of snooker to be played and plenty of questions to be answered.
It has been a unique campaign so far, with Barry Hawkins' Welsh Open triumph on Sunday meaning there have been 14 different winners in the 15 ranking events, while only three players have won multiple titles, ranking or otherwise.
With the Crucible now on the horizon, is Zhao Xintong peaking at the right time to break the dreaded curse, and will we see Ronnie O’Sullivan finally leave his mark on this season?
Here are some of the key things to look out for as we approach the World Championship, which gets underway in Sheffield on April 18 - live on TNT Sports and discovery+.
Who is set to qualify for the Tour Championship?
The penultimate tournament of the season sees the top 12 players based on the one-year rankings compete for the £150,000 prize at the Tour Championship in Manchester.
The tournament is the third and final event of the Players Series, with Zhao winning the first two thanks to recent back-to-back triumphs at the World Grand Prix and the Players Championship.
With only the World Open left to play before the Tour Championship, time is running out for players to book their spot at the tournament.
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Video credit: TNT Sports
Neil Robertson leads the way on the one-year list, while Zhao comes in at second thanks to his recent successes, ahead of Mark Selby in third.
Judd Trump, Mark Williams, Wu Yize, Barry Hawkins, Chris Wakelin and John Higgins make up the rest of the top 10, while it’s O’Sullivan and Mark Allen in the more perilous positions of 11th and 12th, respectively.
Xiao Guodong narrowly trails Allen in 13th, while Jack Lisowski, Elliot Slessor and Zhou Yuelong are also hot on the heels of the top 12 and could break into it with a good run at the World Open in China, which begins on Monday, March 16.
Will we see O’Sullivan before the Crucible?
Rocket Ronnie is scheduled to compete at this month’s World Open, while, as mentioned, he is on track to qualify for the Tour Championship.
But the 50-year-old has had a quiet campaign, featuring in only eight tournaments, and in just two since the turn of the year.
From those events, he has progressed past the semi-finals just once, all the way back in August at the Saudi Arabia Masters.
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O'Sullivan begins semi-final with incredible 147 at Saudi Arabia Masters
Video credit: TNT Sports
The seven-time world champion has competed in just one tournament in the United Kingdom this season, which was the UK Championship in December, suggesting an appearance at the Tour Championship may be unlikely.
The World Open being located in Yushan, China, may make it the tournament of choice for the Rocket as he gears up for the Crucible.
Despite the uncertainty over O’Sullivan’s appearances throughout the season, it is widely expected he will compete for an eighth world title in April.
"I think we can safely say we will see him there," Alan McManus told TNT Sports. "Which version we will see is a different question."
"I think that would be my one last ambition left in snooker really - to get the eighth world [title]," O'Sullivan said in January. "It would be eight, eight, eight. That would be nice."
O’Sullivan has also chosen to play in the World Seniors Championship for the first time, which will take place from May 6-10.
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Will Zhao break the Crucible Curse?
For the third season in a row, there is the opportunity for the 'Crucible Curse' to be broken at the World Championships, with Zhao aiming to defend his maiden title.
From the previous 20 winners since the tournament moved to Sheffield's Crucible Theatre in 1977, no first-time champion has retained their crown.
Between 2017 and 2023, Trump was the only player to have the opportunity to break the curse, with Selby, Williams and O’Sullivan adding to their multiple titles in that time.
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But after winning what remains his only world title in 2019, the Englishman fell at the quarter-final stage the following year.
However, between 2023 and 2025, there were three successive first-time winners, with Luca Brecel, Kyren Wilson and Zhao getting their hands on the trophy.
The curse has remained firmly intact, though, with Brecel and Wilson both losing in their first-round matches as they looked to defend their crown.
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Video credit: TNT Sports
Zhao will undoubtedly enter this year’s tournament among those being tipped for the title, not only because of the way he cruised to victory last year, but because of the form he has rediscovered in recent events.
After a relatively slow start to the campaign, he won the Riyadh Season Snooker Championship in November. But it is his successive victories in the recent World Grand Prix and Players Championship that have propelled the 28-year-old to being spoken of as one of the firm favourites.
Watch and stream the 2025/26 snooker season, including the World Championship, live on TNT Sports and discovery+
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