Ronnie O’Sullivan completes dramatic comeback at the Crucible in World Championship semi-final victory over Mark Selby
Ronnie O’Sullivan roared back to beat Mark Selby 17-16 and set up a World Championship final against Kyren Wilson on a sublime day of snooker.
Both semi-finals were settled in the deciding frame for the first time in Crucible history, but three-time world champion Selby was left fuming, accusing O’Sullivan of playing mind games.
‘During the match I felt like it was a little bit disrespectful the way he played. Every time I put him in a snooker, he hit the balls 100 miles per hour and they could have gone anywhere,’ Selby said.
Ronnie O’Sullivan clinched a 17-16 win over Mark Selby to reach the World Championship final
‘I probably missed the boat a little bit in the third session. At 13-9 I had the chance to go 14-9.
‘But even then the long red I played in the green pocket, I was just about to play next to his seat, and he put his cue by his seat and stood up right in my eyeline. Obviously you just don’t do that. Whether he was trying to do mind games or not, I don’t know.’
O’Sullivan, after further comments about his cue action which have become a trademark of this tournament, added: ‘I got lucky really, I suppose.’
O’Sullivan trailed 16-14 before rattling off breaks of 138 and 71. He made a 64 break in the final frame and edged a safety battle to see off Selby — who denied him a sixth world title in 2014 — for the first time in Sheffield, reaching his seventh final.