Ronnie O’Sullivan reached the semi-finals of the Wuhan Open with a 5-3 win over Mark Selby, crediting a pen he now carries as the reason for his turnaround. The seven-time world champion lost the opening two frames before recovering, finishing the match with breaks of 80 and 129.
O’Sullivan’s 'comfort blanket' pen
Speaking on his new Instagram account, launched with wife Laila Rouass, O’Sullivan said: “I feel really good. The pen, my little comfort blanket when it was all going a bit pear-shaped.” He added: “At 2-0 down I was bang in trouble. Then the pen came into action, it’s all down to the pen. It’s nothing to do with me, it’s this little pen.”
The 50-year-old had already talked up the pen after beating Stephen Maguire in the last 16. “When I’m holding that pen it actually feels good,” he said. “I had that pen in my hand and it makes me feel alright. So when I’m sitting in that chair I’m not thinking, 'oh my arm’s this or that,' it puts you in half a decent frame of mind.”
Struggles with technique
O’Sullivan has regularly spoken about feeling uncomfortable with his game for three or four years, believing he changed his technique to his detriment. He told WST: “I don’t ever get involved in personalities when I’m playing the game, I’m always focused on how I’m hitting the ball. Am I playing well enough to play every shot that I need to play? And I haven’t been, so I’m worried whoever I play at the moment. It didn’t matter if it’s Mark Selby or number 128 in the world, I’m playing with zero confidence.”
He described his ongoing issues as “the disease,” saying: “I’ve got no cue power, I’ve got no sense of direction, I don’t know where the balls are going. As a player you always have some anchors to hang on to. I used to have four or five. One wasn’t working, I’d try another one and then that would get me going. But at the moment I just have nothing and I haven’t had for four years, so it’s just been a nightmare.”
O’Sullivan said he is working hard on his game, spending a lot of time on the practice table, and believes he can still win tournaments if he can find a better technique. “I think 18 months is a fair amount of time to try and unlearn it, and maybe try and find some flow. Because if I play alright, I cue alright, I know I can still win tournaments. I don’t think the competition is that good and I don’t think I’ve got that bad. It’s just that I’m not cueing the ball well.”
Next up: Chang Bingyu
O’Sullivan next faces rising Chinese star Chang Bingyu, who beat Judd Trump 5-1 in the quarter-finals, ending Trump’s two-year reign as world number one. The winner of Zhao Xintong and Neil Robertson will take Trump’s place at the top of the rankings.
O’Sullivan expects a tough test from Chang, who is yet to win his first ranking event. “Obviously, you’ve got Xintong and Wu Yize, but this kid is up there with him, without a doubt. It’s just a matter of time before he starts winning a lot of tournaments.” Chang will be hoping to win his first ranking title this week, while O’Sullivan is looking for his 42nd, but first since January 2024.
