Champion O´Sullivan eases into second round
April 20, 2014
O´Sullivan will play either Jamie Burnett or Joe Perry in the second round.
Lifting the world championship trophy for a sixth time would see ´The Rocket´ draw level with one-time mentor Ray Reardon and Steve Davis while leaving him one shy of Scottish great Stephen Hendry´s record of seven world titles.
But this year´s tournament could see O´Sullivan become the first player since Hendry, who won five successive world championships, to take the title three years running.
That particular feat was also achieved at the Crucible by Davis while before the tournament moved to its current northern English home in 1977, Reardon won four consecutive world championships at a variety of venues including both Manchester and Melbourne from 1973 to 1976.
Hull may have defeated former world champion Peter Ebdon in qualifying but, having played only sporadically since returning to the tour in 2011 after three years in retirement which was triggered by a life-threatening virus, he never truly tested O´Sullivan.
O´Sullivan, watched by sports psychiatrist Steve Peters, whom he credits with reviving his career, made a total clearance of 124 in the second frame, and added further contributions pof 69, 81, 60 and 90 although Hull did manage to post a break of 102 immediately after his opponent´s century.
In the ninth frame O´Sullivan, who knows what it is to make a maximum break at the Crucible, was on course for another 147 after taking seven reds and seven blacks before potting a blue and settling for a frame-winning effort of 90.
That gave O´Sullivan a five-frame lead at the interval and he also won the first of the evening session as well.Hull, who now needed to win eight of the next nine frames, took the next two with breaks of 52 and 68 before O´Sullivan resumed normal service with a match-clinching 54. (AFP)
