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The Sun
06-05-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
‘Like a young Ronnie O'Sullivan' – Mark Williams pays tribute to ‘frightening' Zhao Xintong after stunning Crucible win
SNOOKER icon Mark Williams compared new world champion Zhao Xintong to a "young Ronnie O'Sullivan" following his Crucible win on Monday. Zhao beat Williams 18-12 in the World Snooker Championship final ealier this week. 3 3 In doing so, he became the first player from China to win the title. Williams did not shy away from praising the 28-year-old after the match and even compared him to a legend of the game. The Welshman said: "He's close to as good to watch as O'Sullivan when he was younger "He just walks around the table as if he's just walking to go to the toilet or something. "He's just strolling. Pots from anywhere. Walks around not a care in the world. "Two minutes later he's on 65. Gee whizz! He's got to sixty like that. Frightening. "He goes for his shots and he got most of them in the final. Really tough shots. "They don't go in all the time and when they don't go in it looks a bit erratic. But when they go in, you don't want to be on the other side of him, that's for sure." Asked if Zhao could match the numbers achieved by O'Sullivan, Williams continued: "No. I don't think anyone will ever challenge them records because the standard is too good to get that many Worlds and Masters and UKs, it's too tough. "Who knows? But it will be highly unlikely." Until September last year, Zhao served a 20-month ban for his involvement in match fixing. He did NOT fix a result himself but an independent commission found 'he was a party to another player' fixing two snooker matches. In a separate charge, Zhao was found to have 'bet on snooker matches in breach of the rules' between September 2019 and December 2022. Yet 'following early admissions' and by showing 'genuine remorse for his actions' a 30-month suspension was reduced to 20 months, the lightest ban of all the ten cueists involved. Williams praised Zhao for his triumphant return to the sport following his ban. He continued: "To do what he's done, he's been out for two years, come back on the Q Tour, pretty much won every game. "Gone to qualifying, bashed everyone up. Come here and bashed everyone up in the main tournament. "It's an incredible achievement. It's unbelievable. I haven't got enough nice words to say about him. He's brilliant to watch, pots for fun, makes breaks and good luck to him."
The Irish Sun
06-05-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
‘Like a young Ronnie O'Sullivan' – Mark Williams pays tribute to ‘frightening' Zhao Xintong after stunning Crucible win
SNOOKER icon Mark Williams compared new world champion Zhao Xintong to a "young Ronnie O'Sullivan" following his Crucible win on Monday. 3 Mark Williams praised Zhao Xintong following the 28-year-old's World Snooker Championship win Credit: Reuters 3 Zhao became the first player from China to win the world title on Monday Credit: Getty 3 Xhao was compared to a young Ronnie O'Sullivan Credit: Getty In doing so, he became the first player from China to win the title. The Welshman said: "He's close to as good to watch as "He just walks around the table as if he's just walking to go to the toilet or something. "He's just strolling. Pots from anywhere. Walks around not a care in the world. "Two minutes later he's on 65. Gee whizz! He's got to sixty like that. Frightening. "He goes for his shots and he got most of them in the final. Really tough shots. "They don't go in all the time and when they don't go in it looks a bit erratic. But when they go in, you don't want to be on the other side of him, that's for sure." Most read in Snooker CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS Asked if Zhao could match the numbers achieved by O'Sullivan, Williams continued: "No. I don't think anyone will ever challenge them records because the standard is too good to get that many Worlds and Masters and UKs, it's too tough. "Who knows? But it will be highly unlikely." BBC World Snooker Championship commentator brutally shut down live on air by Shaun Murphy in 'very awkward' exchange Until September last year, Zhao He did NOT fix a result himself but an independent commission found 'he was a party to another player' fixing two snooker matches. In a separate charge, Zhao was found to have 'bet on snooker matches in breach of the rules' between September 2019 and December 2022. Yet 'following early admissions' and by showing 'genuine remorse for his actions' a 30-month suspension was reduced to 20 months, the lightest ban of all the ten cueists involved. Williams praised Zhao for his triumphant return to the sport following his ban. He continued: "To do what he's done, he's been out for two years, come back on the Q Tour, pretty much won every game. Read more on the Irish Sun "Gone to qualifying, bashed everyone up. Come here and bashed everyone up in the main tournament. "It's an incredible achievement. It's unbelievable. I haven't got enough nice words to say about him. He's brilliant to watch, pots for fun, makes breaks and good luck to him." World Snooker Championship 2025 THE World Snooker Championship has concluded after a thrilling final! Follow all the reaction with SunSport's live blog of the World Snooker Championship Latest News Snooker Explained FULL results for 2025 How much prize money was won? Who were the BBC snooker presenters and pundits? What is on Zhao Xintong's bow tie?
Metro
05-05-2025
- Sport
- Metro
Williams compares Zhao to O'Sullivan and rates chances of breaking his records
Mark Williams has compared Zhao Xintong to a young Ronnie O'Sullivan but doubts the new world champion will be reaching the Rocket's Triple Crown records. Zhao was superb in an 18-12 win over Williams in the World Championship final, winning the sport's biggest event for the first time. The 28-year-old had only won one match at the Crucible before this year and served a 20-month ban from the sport due to being concerned in match fixing and betting on snooker. The break from the game has done him no harm at all, now looking like a better player than ever as he romps to the World Championship title. The Welshman was a long way from his best for much of the final but was incredibly impressed by the Chinese star, comparing him to the seven-time world champion. 'He's close to as good to watch as O'Sullivan when he was younger,' said Williams. 'He just walks around the table as if he's just walking to go to the toilet or something. 'He's just strolling. Pots from anywhere. Walks around not a care in the world. Two minutes later he's on 65. Gee whizz! He's got to sixty like that. Frightening. 'He goes for his shots and he got most of them in the final. Really tough shots. They don't go in all the time and when they don't go in it looks a bit erratic. But when they go in, you don't want to be on the other side of him, that's for sure.' Zhao now looks likely to be a real force at the top of the game again, but Williams does not think it will be possible to rack up big titles like O'Sullivan and Stephen Hendry did. Both those legends have won seven world titles, while the Rocket has won eight Masters and eight UK Championships, with Hendry on six Masters and five UKs. Asked if Zhao could match those kind of numbers, Williams said: 'No. I don't think anyone will ever challenge them records because the standard is too good to get that many Worlds and Masters and UKs it's too tough. Who knows? But it will be highly unlikely.' It was no knock on Zhao, though, as the 50-year-old said of him: 'What a potter. Jesus Christ! I remember I used to be like that when I was 27-28. More Trending 'Some of the balls he can pot is unbelievable. He's probably the best potter I've ever seen. I'm glad he's not my rival.' While Zhao's ban is a dark mark on his CV, Williams feels his return in such style is worthy of great praise. 'To do what he's done, he's been out for two years, come back on the Q Tour, pretty much won every game,' said Williams. 'Gone to qualifying, bashed everyone up. Come here and bashed everyone up in the main tournament. 'It's an incredible achievement. It's unbelievable. I haven't got enough nice words to say about him. He's brilliant to watch, pots for fun, makes breaks and good luck to him.' MORE: Zhao Xintong on brink of historic World Snooker Championship title MORE: What is the greatest comeback in World Snooker Championship history? MORE: What is on Zhao Xintong's bow tie? Chimchar is gracing the Crucible final
