By elliott west
Introduction
It has been less than twenty-four hours since Ronnie O’Sullivan won his sixth title at the World Championship and the dust has barely settled on this victory. However this tournament has been seismic, not only showing that snooker can adapt in different circumstances but that the sport itself is loved by so many people. Snooker is an international game that can be translated into so many languages and feeds its audience with drama and euphoria.Proven by the fact that all matches this year at the World Championship were seen on channels and stream feeds across the globe.This was despite the fact that a physical audience was only present on the first days and the last two. Yet despite these obstacles, the event produced a maximum break by John Higgins, meteoric rises for Kurt Maflin and Anthony McGill and the loss of so many top seeds early on in the championship. Not bad going for something that lasted seventeen days.
The problem
Beneath the razzle dazzle of this yearly ritual, lies a problem that Ronnie O’Sullivan exposed in one of his media interviews. Drill down past the title of the professional player and you find an irratic pulse that is able to win on one occasion and flounder in the eyes of defeat at the next.All of them may revere Ronnie but he is their stumbling block. This complex character may turn up on a Monday and eventually win the title or lose to a person who just plays better on the day. However O’Sullivan believes that few players on the tour can consistantly beat him and that is why he has been able to remain a dominant force since he first broke out onto the tour in 1992. Ronnie joins the likes of Ray Reardon and Mark Williams who have won the World Championship title in their 40’s and has that has few flaws in his game. Perhaps the fact that he doesn’t play in all events in the calendar, gives others some breathing space but he constricts the oxygen of the match when he plays well.
Inspiration
Beyond this criticism lies hope and Judd Trump has proved that others can challenge this titan of snooker.Gaining six titles in one season, Judd is so dangerous because he now has the belief that can win and beat anybody. Now a triple crown winner, this softly spoken man from Bristol, produces sublime snooker that is passed on in moments to the likes of Luca Brecel and Judd’s close friend, Jack Lisowski. Jamie Wilson who is only 16 will join the tour after qualifying through the recent Q School.
There may be no action from China this year but we still have a packed tour calendar up to this end of this year.It has meant moving tournaments around and bringing some to other months in the year. This is why snooker is so good at what it does and how all those involved to pitch in to make it happen and work.
Conclusion
Moving forward, snooker is in a very healthy place with the sport constantly expanding far and wide. It is becoming popular in Japan with players starting to emerge and in parts of Africa such as Morocco. There has also been media interest with the recent release of the film, “Break” that bases its plot around snooker and has cameo appearances by Ken Doherty, Jack Lisowski and Liang Wenbo.The future is definately green on the baize.
