Ronnie O’Sullivan loses eight frames in a row to leave title dreams hanging by a thread
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Zhao Xintong produced two century breaks to whitewash Ronnie O’Sullivan in the second session of their World Snooker Championship semi-final, with the Chinese player taking a 12-4 lead and requiring just five more frames to secure a spot in the final.
O’Sullivan made major changes to his cue ahead of the morning session, getting a retip and a change of ferrule from titanium to brass, but such a bold decision turned out to be a regrettable one as the ‘Rocket’ was blown away by the quality of his Chinese opponent.
With exquisite potting and cue ball control on display from the 28-year-old, Xintong punished every chance that came his way, with standout breaks of 112 and 115 in frames 10 and 14 taking his career century total up to 155.
O’Sullivan did have chances at the table himself, but a lack of consistent break building saw him squander golden opportunities, which was typified in the final frame when a routine miss on the blue left the seven-time world champion crestfallen as Xintong picked up the pieces.
The amateur remained confident and in control when the opportunities did fall his way though, with other impressive breaks of 86 and 82 leaving O’Sullivan occupying his chair for the majority of a one-sided session.
O’Sullivan will have to produce a monumental revival if he is to stay in the hunt for a record-breaking eight Snooker World Championship, with the hole deepening as Xintong keeps his foot firmly pressed on the accelerator.
12:01 PM BST
O’Sullivan 4 Xintong 12: Xintong secures whitewash morning session
More anguish for O’Sullivan, who looked to have been developing some forward momentum on the table.
With the reds scattered favourably after a terrific split, O’Sullivan misses another routine blue and looks crestfallen after so many untimely mistakes.
Xintong makes up for such a careless effort with a brilliant recovery on a thin red to leave himself on a perfect angle for the blue and proceeds to clean up the remaining balls.
Eight straight frames for Xintong secures a 12-4 lead, with the assured 28-year-old only five frames away from a place in the final.
Frame 16 (best of 33): O’Sullivan 28-87 Xintong
11:46 AM BST
O’Sullivan 4 Xintong 11: Xintong rampant over a lacklustre O’Sullivan
O’Sullivan is at the table after a poor Xintong break off, striking the opening red in to the heart of the pocket.
But it’s more frustration for the seven-time world champion as he misses the yellow off the spot after a fabulous pot on a loose red to the middle pocket.
Despite uncharacteristically missing a routine red earlier in the frame, O’Sullivan fails to punish Xintong’s error, and the Chinese player registers a 37 break to get yet another frame on the board.
Frame 15 (best of 33) O’Sullivan 22-69 Xintong
11:34 AM BST
O’Sullivan 4 Xintong 10: Xintong a cut above with second century of the session
So many times O’Sullivan has inflicted pain on his opponents through the years, but the ‘Rocket’ is on the receiving end every frame in this session.
Again, it’s such a poor safety from O’Sullivan, leaving Xintong with a straight red to get to the table.
Another fabulous split to open up the pack of reds situates the balls so nicely for the 28-year-old, and the amateur puts the frame beyond doubt with some world-class play.
A 112 break earlier in the session is bettered by 115 and the hole is getting deeper for O’Sullivan.
Frame 14 (best of 33): O’Sullivan 0-115 Xintong
11:26 AM BST
O’Sullivan 4 Xintong 9: More ruthless potting puts Xintong five frames clear
O’Sullivan’s break-off is far from ideal again and Xintong dispatches a long red emphatically to build his break up.
With the pink and black tied up, the Chinese player elects for the blue and from the resulting red, unleashes a fabulous split on the pack with magnificent cue power.
Fantastic cue ball control and a couple of superb thin cuts builds up a 67 break and it’s a fifth consecutive frame for Xintong.
O’Sullivan is in precarious waters.
Frame 13 (best of 33): O’Sullivan 0-67 Xintong
11:02 AM BST
O’Sullivan 4 Xintong 8: Xintong profits from poor O’Sullivan foul
O’Sullivan pots a fortuitous red but fails to cut a thin blue in to the top-right pocket as the struggles with his cue changes continue.
Xintong looks ruthless but then misses what appears to be a routine yellow as his break of 57 comes to an end.
O’Sullivan is at the table and has a chance to pinch this frame from the claws of Xintong, but poorly overscrews the cue ball and proceeds to inexplicably miss a red from the 28-year-old’s safety.
Xintong registers another break of seven to seal the frame and has now won the opening four frames.
There is now a mid-session interval and O’Sullivan needs to find some extra gears as this match is unravelling.
Frame 12 (best of 33): O’Sullivan 22-74 Xintong
10:50 AM BST
O’Sullivan 4 Xintong 7: Fabulous 82 break develops three-frame advantage
Zhao Xintong is in full flow at the moment, pouncing on every O’Sullivan error.
A clinical break of 82 puts him further clear of the ‘Rocket’, with the 28-year-old extending his lead to three frames.
Frame 11 (best of 33) O’Sullivan 0-83 Xintong
10:38 AM BST
O’Sullivan 4 Xintong 6: Century break from the underdog
I mentioned before play began about Xintong needing to tighten his safety game up, but O’Sullivan has played two really poor shots to leave Xintong in the driving seat.
There’s such a calmness from the first-time semi-finalist, who has played another decent split on the pack of reds to build up a lengthy lead in the 10th frame.
He proceeds to register a 154th career century and opens up a two-frame advantage in sensational style.
Frame 10 (best of 33): O’Sullivan 4-120 Xintong
10:24 AM BST
O’Sullivan 4 Xintong 5: Superb split hands Xintong a slender lead
BBC commentator John Virgo likens Xintong to the legendary Jimmy White with the way he conducts himself on the table, and it’s easy to see why people are so enthralled by his style.
With the final two reds together, the 28-year-old plays a fabulous split to get them in to play.
He dispatches them both but misses the green when trying to clear the colours.
It won’t matter though, with Xintong making a really positive start to take the lead once again.
Frame 9 (best of 33) O’Sullivan 23-79 Xintong
10:20 AM BST
O’Sullivan 4 Xintong 4
An over-cut on a red at baulk means it’s end of break for Xintong, who flicks off the yellow and will be disappointed to come away with only a break of 22.
Safeties follow and O’Sullivan plays a really poor shot, hitting the red far too thin to leave the cue ball halfway down the table, but Xintong can’t rattle a simple red in.
O’Sullivan leaves himself out of position on a black but plays a fabulous thin cut to keep the break alive, but more sloppy positional play from the ‘Rocket’ sees him miss a tough red off the side cushion.
Xintong is back in control again.
10:13 AM BST
O’Sullivan squanders early opportunity (O’Sullivan 4 Xintong 4)
Xintong plays a very poor attempt on a loose red, but O’Sullivan can’t take his chance and rattles the jaw of the bottom pocket.
The Chinese player proceeds to pot his opening red of the session, followed by the pink, and has a promising opening here to get back in front.
10:11 AM BST
We’re under way...
Both players receive another rousing reception from the Crucible crowd.
Xintong breaks off, but how will O’Sullivan fair with such a drastic cue change?
10:00 AM BST
Safety exchanges could prove to be crucial
With the second session just moments away, it will be intriguing to see how the safety battle will play out this morning.
O’Sullivan was superior in that department yesterday, profiting off many poor Xintong attempts as he failed to get the cue ball back to the cushion in baulk.
The Chinese player will have to be much stronger in his exchanges, otherwise O’Sullivan could use that to develop an advantage.
09:55 AM BST
O’Sullivan makes major cue change ahead of second session
We’ve witnessed and heard all tournament about O’Sullivan’s struggles with his new cue but he’s now made a major change to it ahead of the 10am session.
Presenter Hazel Irvine revealed about the change on the BBC.
She said: “We knew that Ronnie O’Sullivan was playing with a new tip in that session.
“Immediately afterwards, we are hearing, he actually went to a shop in Sheffield and changed not only the tip, but the ferrule of his cue, a rather extraordinary thing to do in the middle of a semi-final.”
What a massive decision to make, could it be a masterstroke, or will O’Sullivan be left regretting such a late switch?
09:49 AM BST
WATCH: Xintong breaks the pocket in opening session
He broke the pocket! 😱
Zhao Xintong quite literally SMASHES a pocket during his Snooker World Championships semi-final 🤣 pic.twitter.com/0oLk9NfWnj— TNT Sports (@tntsports) May 1, 2025
09:37 AM BST
Welcome back to the second session...
Welcome to our live blog of the Snooker World Championship from the Crucible, where seven-time champion Ronnie O’Sullivan will shortly resume his semi-final against Zhao Xintong, with the scores tied at four frames apiece.
To judge by yesterday’s opening session of the best-of-33 contest, this morning promises to be an absorbing encounter, with the vastly experienced – if also complicated – O’Sullivan taking on the hugely talented first-time semi-finalist from China, who is aiming to become the first-ever Asian champion of the prestigious event.
The 28-year-old Zhao showed little signs of being overawed by the occasion early on, taking a 2-0 lead and then finished impressively with a break of 86 – the highest of the match to date – to make things all square.
O’Sullivan, who turns 50 in December and has complained all tournament about his form and confidence, finally begun something like his richest form when winning three frames in a row and at one stage stopping his opponent registering a point for almost 34 minutes.
He began with a 64 and then conjuring a fluid 73 to even the scores before jamming a black in the jaws with a century for the taking. Both players saved their best for last as they warmed to an engaging battle, O’Sullivan regaining the upper hand with a break of 82 before Zhao shot back with 86.
In the other semi-final, world No 1 Judd Trump and three-time champion Mark Williams are scheduled to restart at 2.30pm today, with the former 5-3 ahead.
