World Snooker Championship 2014

The "Snooker From the Gods" is back

As Ronnie O`Sullivan beats Shaun Murphy

for a Semi-Final place with a session to spare

Shaun started the match as good as it could be, compiling breaks of 101 and 59 to put himself 2-0 up, and he was 23 points in front on the brown in the third frame, but he failed to escape from a snooker and Rocket cleaned the table. 

Then, O`Sullivan won the next 7 frames, with top breaks of 72, 52, 94, 136, and 63 to build a 8-2 lead.

Shaun finally got another frame on the board, winning the 11th with breaks of 36 and 24, but it turned hard for him as his opponent captured the next frame with a 118 break, and then won the next 4 frames with top breaks of 59, 47, 42 and 58 to complete his 13-3 victory.

Murphy was playing great, but when he find himself 2 frames up he looked to the score board maybe thinking "Oh, I just need to keep this lead on", then he tried to turn the frames scrappy and his long pot wasn't excellent anymore, but Ronnie's safety and mental is what is going better for him so far, so he could level the match and from there Shaun Murphy lost confidence and feel the pressure.

Anyway Ronnie O`Sullivan is playing very well, and I don't think that if Shaun had played his best there, he could have any chance.

Maybe some peoples says that Ronnie isn't playing that well because they get used with a Ronnie O`Sullivan winning all the frames in a single visit, but it's the Crucible, and there's long frames, nobody can win that many frames in a single visit.

Ronnie said after match:

“I had to change the tip on my cue on Tuesday night after the first session, that was a new one today.
You want to get comfortable with it. It is one of the bug-bears of being a snooker player, no matter how well you are playing you are not 100 per cent confident.
I got off to a dodgy start against Shaun and I could easily have been 3-0 or 4-0 down in that match. I got a bit lucky to be level at 2-2.
But then after that I kept getting let in quite easily, I didn't really have to fight for my chances and just fed off Shaun’s errors. He let me off the hook a bit.
It doesn't bother me if I haven’t had to play my best, I had a very tough match against Joe Perry and you don’t want too many like that.”

Murphy said:

"We are blessed and lucky to be in the era of Ronnie, witnessing someone who is that good, and it is very, very difficult to play against him.
You feel as if you are taking part on his table, and I didn’t cope with it very well. I started really well – shame it wasn’t best of three.
I let him off the hook. Momentum can change very quickly, I made between 13 and 20 fatal errors and at this very top level against Ronnie you are going home.
You sit there and plan what you are going watch on TV this evening, and I have a list as long as my arm of things I have to work on. But I had chances and am sorry I didn’t make more of a fight of it.
He is the most naturally gifted player of all time, and the goals of equalling Steve Davis’s record and Stephen Hendry’s record of world titles spur him on.
I felt the pressure, it was a huge match at the World Championships against the champion – and we have all got to be more clinical and raise the bar.”

Ronnie O`Sullivan will play his best-of-33 frames Semi-Final against Hawkins, who beats Dale in the decider after lead 11-5. The times are(Local time): 

First Session -Thursday, 13:00

Second Session - Friday, 10:00

Third Session - Friday, 19:00

Fourth Session - Saturday, 14:30

Mark Selby also qualified for the Semi-Final, beating Alan McManus 13-5 in the quarters. Even he is qualified for the semis, Selby's matches has been in that usual scrappy way, as he still didn't got his A-Game or even played his best.

While Neil Robertson, his next opponent, beat Judd Trump 13-11 making the historic ton of tons. The Australian isn't a good strategist player in my opinion, but he is scoring so heavily and his long pot is so good that his strategic don't means so much.
Of course, we are talking about Mark Selby in a best-of-33 frames, so I think this can be a very close encounter.

You can always follow all results and news from the Crucible in our Facebook Page.

I sadly inform you here, that Zsolt Kiss - a Ronnie's fan who ever did often updates on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube - sadly passed away Tuesday, after a car accident on Wednesday (April, 23) which caused head injuries.

He was 22 and will be missed, Ronnie O`Sullivan lost one of his fans, and I lost the guy who helped me to find streams when I started to watch snooker, and helped me to learn a little bit more of English.

My first snooker match live was Neil Robertson vs Marco Fu, at the 2013 Australian Open Final. I watched it using a link which Zsolt send to me.

Rest in Peace Zsolt Kiss.