The Rocket is in the Zone | Ronnie O'Sullivan vs Fan Zhengyi | 2022 Champion of Champions SF

As Juanio Sullivan showed when he was beaten by this man Fan Zhengyi in that European Masters Final. First chance then. I think something that we're learning as we go with Fan Zhengyi, he's not, I mean he's a respecter of reputation but it's not going to put him off the job. I think he's one of those who does like this type of occasion. Second chance, just wonder if the pink spots covered might be in business. Yeah you can see there the pink spot is covered isn't it, so this is going to look better once this pink disappears, going on the black spot. Of course taking this one away, if he plays on pink he's going to tie it back up. Yeah that was good wasn't it, obviously he figured the pink would still be on to two pockets down this end. Came on the incorrect side of the blue so had to be content with leaving this mid-distance spot. Should get it but there's a grain of doubt. Yeah that's the type of shot that when you play it correctly gives you nice feeling, good confidence for what's to come. It's a shot that he's played particularly well all week, getting the cue ball working out of a bunch of reds like this. Very good, yeah that's good, you're unsure, reset, get back. Red Chan compromised, of course the good news the pink has gone half out of commission. In the first round. He played the double kiss off the red to perfection. This black disappears, it's a really good chance now. The red by the left cushion shouldn't be a huge hurdle if he gets that far, being able to play it with the opposite hand. Didn't quite get the cue ball around the corner so he can't get close to the red unless he goes round the houses. Yeah but this one in terms of difficulty is right up there because it's bolt straight. Yes but hasn't he taken them quite beautifully. All right it was a bonus, there's no denying that, absolutely. You have to play guilt-free and get on and do the job and he's done just that, great start. Yeah so decision time for Fan, he obviously has a cut back but it's way too dangerous, he could play a similar shot that one Ronnie played, less risk attached, brilliant. Yeah but not this time. One. Top level sport. Eight. That's the challenge, the further you go in a tournament the higher the stakes are raised, the higher the standard is. Four. Trying to reach the final of the champion of champions for the sixth time. Fifty. Twenty-one. Twenty-two. Twenty-nine. Thirty. Thirty-six. He had to go deeper in the cue ball because of course the red, the apex red, it was left of the pink spot but executed to perfection. Forty-two. Forty-three. Fifty. Fifty-one. Fifty-eight. Fifty-nine. There's something about a semi-final of a champion of champions, he's won five semi-finals in this tournament. Seventy. Over the years. Eighty. Eighty-one. Eighty-eight. Eighty-nine. Ninety-six. Ninety-seven. One hundred and five. One hundred and eight. One hundred and twelve. One hundred and seventeen. Two nil and flag. Off again. One. Brilliant shot that, isn't it? Illustrating how difficult that was and hardly any pocket to go at. That's unlucky, I suppose it's fair dinkum. One nil, Sullivan, one. Yeah, very unfortunate but let's call it one apiece in the fortune stakes. Great pot. One. No, Alan, not even O'Sullivan could have legislated for that. Eight. Swap. Yeah, this has been a good riposte. He's obviously been swamped the first couple of frames. Don't get too ahead of yourself. Ninety. Try to make it happen as such. Let it happen organically, if you like, just by the fact that he is playing good stuff anyway. The key point now, yeah, if he's come straight in that red, that's quite a bad error. Yeah, so there, got a bit of angle but it kind of takes the blue out of the equation. So you would expect him to play for half ball, green or brown. Yeah, see, that's just asking a wee bit too much, I think. Just naturally let the shot dictate the shot that you play yourself. The angle he had was top it through and he was guaranteed half ball, green or brown. He tried to create something that wasn't really there. It's end of break. Thirty-one. Panjengi, thirty-one. Just off straight. Played this shot a couple of nights ago a few times actually and got really close every time. It wasn't easy. Panjengi, one. Expect to hit it at least within, well, two, three at the most. The only red he can leave is the one he's trying to lay on and he's got it. A dizzy gamble here. The cross double, just looking at it, it's not really on. The cue ball should hit above the left corner. Yes, it was above the left corner. It wasn't really on, so he's trying to find a gap. Oh, yes. Neil Fowles mentioned earlier this week that that was the major feature of Fan's triumph in the European Masters. He's spotting from distance. Played that beautifully as well. He's actually a wee bit unfortunate, this cut back red. Can he hold for black? Yeah, very good. Six. See, when you're playing a cannon like that, it's very easy to take your eye off the pot. So that was good concentration. 13. 14. 21. Panjengi, 21. It's a mammoth task to put four reds, four blacks and all the colours to force a re-spot where they are. Yeah, just got to be smart about this. One. Yeah, well done. I think the first three shots of that little cameo break the character. Especially given, as I say, he'd been swamped the first couple of frames. Big frame coming up. Nine. In the European Masters final, Fan was stubborn. Every time O'Sullivan threatened, he repelled the challenge. 60. And that's what he's been here, stubborn. 70. Yeah, it's funny, isn't it? How snooker people think you get a point, you think, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. You know, at a time like that, you don't need it. 20. 28. Yeah, and also from what I've been observing in this championship alone, he's not frightened of the top players. That is absolutely for sure. No way is he intimidated, frightened, any of those things. He'll fancy this job, no doubt about it. 40. So important. A missed pink and a missed black in the first two frames were costly for him. Foul on the miss. Fan Zhengyi fought. That slid as well, so he won't be playing it a third time. Foul on the miss. Fan Zhengyi, sir. Hmm, he has pulled your breath. He has been warned. He's got the red. I just used a wee bit too much pace. The cue ball wasn't able to spin away from the brown in time. Fan Zhengyi, six. Yeah, but all he can do is try and lay the cue ball in the corner. Definitely believe in something. Just the question of how difficult whatever red Ronnie Face wants to play. He's, I think he's got the straightish one that goes topside of blue. Big shot this coming up, as Phil said. The way the reds are, lots of reward and offer. Nick's mistake could be costly. That was the table. Not quite at his mercy, but certainly a table on which he could prosper. Six. Seven. Yeah, if this was in practice, he might gamble on the two reds next to the black. He's going to build it the old school way. Something that Stephen Henry had picked up on this week, actually. He doesn't tend to, these days, play the really attacking shot early on in a break. He likes to construct it in a certain way. Ten. This is the money shot. If he can get straight or just high of straight on the black. Eight. He's off and running. And a wee bit awkward hampered. 25. 26. 33. 34. Yeah, Phil mentioned earlier about his long game this week, and he's right. It hasn't been up to the usual standard, but I suppose when you think about it, when he's in this sort of position, you're not playing in a 12x6 table. You're playing in one that's about six feet wide and about four feet deep, because the cue ball never seems to go any higher than that. 50. 57. 58. 65. Yeah, so two reds needed for the 3-1 advantage. And it looks a formality now, and so the decision not to rush in looks like it's going to pay off. 72. 79. 80. When they met at Milton Keynes in February, the script was ripped up. Here, the form book is looking much more reliable. 85. 86. The halfway point, he leads 3-1. Clearly a gulf between the real top players in this kind of environment, and players who are just below. But everyone that's here is one at an event, and I guess a young player's got to try and bridge that gap, which is not easy. A bit of a tempter here, the red to the left fiddle. He might find himself in a position where he may have to go for this one. Cue was heading up somewhere towards the yellow. Not nice, really. The pop wasn't guaranteed, and nor was position. One. Six. Seven. And he certainly made sure he got topside of the blue. He's gone a little too far, in fact. ...engineer that into open play. 12. A little grimace, he's not on it particularly feeling to get onto a colour from here. It's a bit straight. That was probably as far up the table as he could have managed, but with the yellow away from its spot, the up and down, not so difficult. Questioning which red he plays on, though. Left side, not a great deal will go. Oh, it's a great effort to finish on that red left-handed, but he just came a little bit too far to the right. That's why he's using the rest. Not an easy table still. Playing some good shots. That was a nice cannon once again, that pink. 26. 31. 32. He's done quite well to make as many as he has from where the balls have been. That's another top shot, isn't it, positionally. 38. Well, he might go into the reds here. He's got an angle to disturb them. This time, the break is over. 45. He's made some brilliant breaks in his career. This 45 break hasn't been bad, I can tell you. Without anything ever on. Yeah, in the end, he just needed to get on one, didn't he, which he didn't. Otherwise, that could have been prime over. Wow, unlucky. Quite well, because you've got no control over the red that you miss. One. Think about trying to zigzag the cue ball across left to right, and in behind the red down on the black cushion. But as I'm saying it, I'm not having to play the shot. I think he's got a swerve into the first cushion. It's just horrible. Well, it's a bit of a shame. It was quite a good effort. But going that side of the red was the worst scenario. So, O'Sullivan, 50 to the good, with a chance for 4-1. One. He's been completely businesslike this evening, not really focused. Because, of course, he knows firsthand how well Fan Zhengyi can play. Seven. Eight. It looks like another frame has gone pretty quickly. So, this is for 4-1. Of course, matches can be won from this position. But it's going to take some help. He's going to need O'Sullivan to start to miss and make mistakes. He's fairly aggressive with his shot selection. 21. You know it. When he's had to play safe, he's done so immaculately. He may have, in a roundabout way, done him a favour that he's already lost to Fan Zhengyi. Not going to take him lightly. 29. 36. Some of the form that won him that seventh Crucible crown in the spring. 43. 44. 50. 52. 55. Ronnie O'Sullivan. So, he's left the red. O'Sullivan has made 55. And he needs just two more for victory. Leading now 4-1. Try and apply some pressure in that European Masters final. Of course, it was a longer match. It was best-of-19. He made two centuries, five half-centuries, Fan. So, he scored really heavily during the day. On that day, when he made all those breaks in there, finally knocked a number of those in as well. Four. Oh, that's a better shot than it looked. Well played. And a great tournament, of course, to get in the event. 30. 21. 26. 27. It's not too bad. It's straighter down the centre of the table with the cue ball. They're not easy shots, those, to hold. Trying to kill the cue ball with backspin. Fan Zhengyi. 32. Not going to hurt O'Sullivan. 32 from there. But it's at least a start. He's got a good long lead. Fan Zhengyi won. I think he could have done better there. O'Sullivan can get to the edge of the bunch, I believe. There was a situation where Fan Zhengyi should have done better. He had to put O'Sullivan in some trouble. And now he's in a bit of... Don't know if he's quite done it. A couple of cushions here. But maybe it's playing the little glance. Not easy if he is. Difficult shot, this. Oh, dear. It's the one thing he cannot do on that shot. He's hit too much of it. Almost fell off to miss it and get a feeler for the shot. It looked as if it was a pretty dangerous shot to take on. Options were thin on the ground, mind you. So this lead doesn't look too much now. Is it just 32? Six. Seven. 40. 50. Now the top row of the three creeps past the others. The right corner. 22. 23. Considering shots getting the other two into play. And other players perhaps would have taken the reds in the middle of the table earlier. One is on the attack. 30. Needs all four reds. With high value colours as well. 31. Otherwise he'll pop the yellow, which I'm sure he could do. But he thought he didn't need it. Yeah, he's worked all that out. 37. As I say, just looks really sharp in general. He's really focused hard. Here to do a job this evening. 44. 45. Red-black is sort of match play shot here. 52. Eliminates any chance that he could miss the yellow. But he took the lower value colour. It's not dissimilar in the way it's going to the match. Against Yao Jin Tong the other night. 62. Yeah, I mean Fan got in well. But he only made 32. And not any sort of lead really. Green stays out. So it's two snookers needed. Walking to the table now. You'd be worried. I'm saying that Fan can't get the snookers. But you know what I'm saying. Certain players are more proficient than others. If he stays on the brown ball, it's two snookers. And he's not really very threatening either way there, is he? Might have been better to pop the brown and get it on blue, pink and black. It's just not his night, is it? Didn't get the snooker. And in goes the puck. 44. Four and a frame. Ronnie O'Sullivan. Yeah, Fan was in earlier. Didn't make enough. O'Sullivan had it in that little snooker. And that made the difference. Ronnie O'Sullivan. One away. Leading 5-1. It wasn't a bad flick, was it, actually? Played one of those towards the end of the match with Ryan Day. Eventually won him the match. But... Ronnie's long game is not always as good as everything else in his game. I don't think he's quite the best long putter in the game, but... Very often, you know, his safety and his break building completely makes up for it. He's finished a little awkward here. This is a big shot. Might make the ground up that he thought it would for the next red. Five. Ronnie O'Sullivan's five. Well, the stage was set, wasn't it? For a kind of grandstand finish there with the reds in the open. One. Eight. Overscrewed a bit there. Not bad. 14. 15. 21. 22. Up to winning the European Masters, as we've said several times. 29. He's come here. This way, he can perform really well. 30. 37. 44. 50. 51. So, a couple of balls away from winning his second frame. 59. And Fan has very impressively charged through it. 66. Yeah, I agree. It's been an excellent break, this. Just the way that he made it, the way he opened the balls up. Realised that he's got to start winning frames in one visit to compete, which is absolutely how it is. 73. 74. And this is the sort of snooker that's got him this far in the event. 81. 82. If you said a year ago which Chinese player would get to the semi-finals of the Champion of Champions, I don't think anyone would have chosen Fang Zhengyi. At that point, he hadn't done really anything. 90. He's found his best game. 98. Just can see the confidence coming into his game. 101. A good century break there. Really well made. 105. 110. Yeah, I think the shackles are off there, aren't they? It's just a question of, let's go for it. And in this frame, it's been very impressive. 116. Pulls one back as Sullivan's lead is cut to 5-2. An immediate chance from Sullivan. 1. 6. 7. They certainly used the pocket there. 14. Put the cue ball down towards the red. 50. Yeah, a chance to play a little nudge for the bunch here. That's beautifully done. He overhid it because he's more concerned that the cue ball's staying on the red. Brushed a couple of reds into play. 23. 30. He's opened things up in the way that only he knows. And it would be on this red. 31. 38. 39. 46. 47. I'm not sure that played it to finish on the pink. I thought he probably tried to play on the black and was left with the pink to the middle. He's furious that the reds have all gone in the way of each other. He has to play safe. Very healthy lead. Ronnie O'Sullivan, 53. Decent 5-10-3. Yeah, it didn't get too close. The only red I think is the thin one. Into the left corner here. Maybe screwed a red down the cushion earlier in the match. With his left hand. Any left-hander would have been pleased with. He's a right-hander. 6. 7. Well, that is surely that now. 30. What a Sunday we have in prospect. 14. 22. 29. What a match that will be. They're both playing so well, aren't they? Trump has been impressive this week. While Ronnie O'Sullivan always felt he was going to brush aside players put in front of him. I think he's done so in pretty emphatic style. 37. Been pretty clinical, I think. 38. Ronnie O'Sullivan's crown away from him as top dog in the sport. And at times. 44. Want to really settle back and enjoy it. 45. Been close. O'Sullivan. 51. Has played to a high level. And fan will regret just a few errors here. 55. 57. The enjoyment this man has brought to people. This skill on show is as impressive as all the titles he's won. 69. 55. 62. 75. Champion against the world champion. It's Judd Trump against Ronnie O'Sullivan to decide who is the champion of champions.