By Elliott West
Introduction
I don’t often get excited by the progress of an up-and-coming snooker player but Zhang Anda has caught my eye in recent months. This Chinese player whom I have followed since his rookie days has a fire in his belly and a hunger to win that takes a leaf directly out of a winner’s manual. Cool, calm and collected, Zhang is unphased by the pressure pot environment of the tournament table and when he gets a chance at a break, takes the bull by the horns and is not afraid to take on those nerve-jangling pot attempts. This 31-year-old who is nicknamed ‘Mighty Mouse’ and has been a professional since 2009, has the power of concentration running through his veins and has the talent of sniffing out the daring shots, cannons and safety, like a sniffer dog looking for those vital clues.
Unchartered Waters
Zhang Anda has already reached one final this season. A good run at this year’s English Open in Brentwood nearly came to fruition losing 7-9 to Judd Trump after having a commanding lead of 6-2. Anda beat Anthony McGill 4-1, Elliot Slessor 4-1, Ronnie O’Sullivan 4-2, Zhou Yuelong 5-4 and Liu Hongyu 6-2 to reach the final. An impressive run for a player who has bags of potential. With Judd’s winning streak now broken, Zhang has the chance to prove himself as a rival and what better time than when many of the top 16 are not fulfilling their true potential and Ronnie O’Sullivan is an opponent that Anda can beat.
The China Effect
With all the potential threats out of the equation, it looked like Ronnie would have a smooth run to the fina of the International Championship. However, he came across Zhang. From 4-2 up, Anda made a perfect break to punish an O’Sullivan error but then missed the crucial last pink. The afternoon session finished 4-4. Returning for the evening session, looked in a more positive mindset and opened up a 6-4 lead but Zhang fought back in this race to 9 frames and pulled back to 6-6. Anda would go on to win the next two to carve out a 9-6 victory, winning five consecutive frames. A great win that O’Sullivan was gracious in defeat, accompanying his customary fist shake with a beaming smile and an off-microphone compliment.
In the final, Zhang met Tom Ford. A unique final because neither player had yet won a ranking title. Ford is a tough cookie and with over 20 years of experience on the tour, the Englishman would always be a tough nut to crack. The afternoon session was really a game of cat and mouse where both played proved their form but you couldn’t separate the two with a cigarette paper. The firework moment was when pulled off a 147 break in the third frame, to the joy of the Tianjin audience. A crowd who often forgot to put their mobile phones on silent. A session that ended with Anda 5-4 up.
However, when both players came back for the evening session, the tides of time changed. This season has seemed to invigorate Zhang Anda, having made more century breaks in this tournament than he had in the whole of last season. Although a valiant effort by Tom Ford, this experienced player wasn’t able to take the mighty out of the mouse. With an 8-5 lead at the mid-session interval, the winning line was looming for this Chinese player. This was proved when he came back and proved his worth with a 10-6 victory.
Victory at Last!
Anda’s first-ranking tournament win is significant and it is great to see that it happened on home soil. This victory with not only a prize cheque of £175,000 but all the trappings involved. Zhang now joins the top 16 with this result, taking him to 15th in the provisional rankings and a whole host of sponsorship deals. It will be interesting to see whether Zhang can kick on from this victory. From his performance in the International Championship, he looks extremely dangerous and I wouldn’t be surprised if he adds to his trophy cabinet very soon. A snooker journey and I am very excited to see how it pans out. Anda became the 6th Chinese player to win a ranking event.
