Ding Junhui denied UK snooker title by Ronnie O’Sullivan – but earns another shot at him at the Masters
- O’Sullivan becomes oldest UK champion, 30 years after he was its youngest winner aged 17, and says it’s ‘bonkers’ that the ‘class of ’92’ keep winning
- US$127,000 prize money in York hands Ding a first-round Masters clash with the world No 1 in early January
China’s Ding Junhui came up just short against Ronnie O’Sullivan in the final of snooker’s UK Championship, but his runner-up cheque has earned him another crack at the world No 1 as soon as next month.
A 10-7 loss in York banked Ding £100,000 (US$127,000) in prize money, landing him in the world’s top 16 in time to qualify for the Masters – and a first-round encounter in London in early January with the seven-time world champion.
Ding, 36, who said he had “really taken the crowd here to heart”, has found the UK tournament a happy hunting ground since his breakthrough moment as an 18-year-old winner in 2005.
Further triumphs followed in 2009 and 2019, and when he pegged O’Sullivan back to 7-7 during the final’s second session late on Sunday, a fourth title looked feasible, only for O’Sullivan to pull away and collect £250,000 in winnings.
“It was an honour to play Ding,” O’Sullivan, who turns 48 on Tuesday, told World Snooker Tour. “He’s such a classy player and such a classy guy. To share the table with him in that venue and in that final was an honour.
“I know there will have been so many people in China watching that final supporting Ding and supporting me as well. We’ve put on a good show.”
O’Sullivan’s record-extending eighth UK crown made him the tournament’s oldest winner – fully three decades years after he was its youngest, in 1993 aged 17.
It also struck another blow for the enduring “class of ’92” – O’Sullivan, John Higgins and Mark Williams, all of whom turned professional that year and remain at the top of the sport.
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“You get a different appreciation for it,” O’Sullivan said of his longevity. “I am really experienced now, so I don’t panic as much and I don’t worry.
“I get times when I think I’m 7-5 up and haven’t really flew. That is because my base-level B and C game is still pretty high.
“You just have to focus, so now I think I use my head more and win matches with my experience more.
“It’s just bonkers, isn’t it? That we’re 48 and still winning tournaments. I just don’t get it. [The World Championship in April] will be a hard thing to do, because it is 17 days. Physically that will be a tall ask of me, John or Mark to win. These tournaments that are a week, we can still do it.”
The Rocket has shown little sign of slowing down, with this latest Triple Crown title – his 22nd – making him a 40-time ranking-event winner. The next best haul is that of Stephen Hendry, with 18 and 36 respectively.
“I love it,” O’Sullivan said. “I love competing, I love performing, I love playing and I love that I went out there and I used my head.
“Because at the end of the day, I have this thing in my head that people want me to play perfect snooker. My friend said to me the other day that they don’t. He said they love your thoughts and love all of the ups and downs of it.
“I just wanted to go out there today and try hard to be professional and honest. If I won, great, and if I didn’t then at least do my best.”
