Ronnie O'Sullivan did himself few favours with his post final comments after losing 9-8 from 8-5 up to Mark Selby in last night's Welsh Open.
"I don't know if Mark's talented," he said. "He plays a very negative game. He doesn't take a ball on unless he's going to leave it safe."
In O'Sullivan's defence, he said this literally minutes after he was defeated, when the frustration at having thrown away a big lead still burned deep.
However, any suggestion that Selby somehow won the title by default is ridiculous.
O'Sullivan was in first on 24 in the decider but failed to make a fairly simple cannon into the reds off the black.
At the end, he lashed out at a very risky double, from which he lost the match.
Selby applied pressure, which is what you have to do. He is more methodical in pace than O'Sullivan. This is how he plays. Why would he suddenly speed up?
His comeback was a tribute to his tenacity, his self belief and, yes, his talent.
He's a worthy winner.
5 comments:
Here here. I argued similarly earlier today.
couldn't agree more...my friends often wonder why i'm not a fan of Ronnie, but while I marvel at his talent, his frequent bad attitude & petulance is a total turn off to me.
Yeah, ...I think this was more a case of red mist, frustration, disappointment, you name it. At this point in time, his mind must have been in turmoil. I've given him the benefit of the doubt.
Andy
I don't think O'Sullivan was helped when the interviewer's first words to him, in seemingly sincere fashion, were "Congratulations. You've won the highest break prize."
The incredulity on O'Sullivan's face was noticeable as he replied "Fantastic" wryly.
Anyway, he actually only said much of what was true – that Selby played fairly coutiously and prevailed in the end. That is true, and why shouldn't he play as he sees fit? It worked.
Selby looked fantastic in the final, so controlled and even at 8-6 down you fancied him to win. He also looked so determined not to lose.
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