ROCKET IN MY SIGHTS

Fired-up Ding’s on a revenge mission

DING JUNHUI is out to avenge his worst-ever defeat against Ronnie O’Sullivan tomorrow.

The sport’s biggest global stars clash at the Crucible in a Betfred World Championship quarter-final – with an expected 150 million tuning in on Chinese TV.

Ding, 30, China’s top player, grew up idolising ‘The Rocket’ before moving to the UK in his teens.

Fight

But many of their clashes have seen world No.4 Ding, last year’s world final runner-up, freeze like a rabbit caught in the headlights.

The worst of those losses came in the 2007 Masters final, where Ding was driven to tears by a partisan crowd and had to be persuaded to return to the arena.

Ding, who has not beaten O’Sullivan in a major event for 11 years, said: “When I was younger, I was in awe of him.

‘‘But I am really looking forward to this match and I will fight with ® him. At the Masters final 10 years ago I didn’t play well – people didn’t see what I can do.

“It was difficult, and it was the same in other matches.

“Mark Selby is a player who always plays well against Ronnie and produces his best.

“The hero thing has gone, I am older, I have won many titles, I got to a World Championship final and am playing as well as ever.”

Meanwhile, Scotland’s Stephen Maguire says he fears no one after surging into the quarter-finals.

The 36-year-old demolished firstround sensation Rory McLeod 13-3 with a session to spare last night.

Maguire has been a Crucible semi-finalist twice and is a fivetime ranking event winner.

He admits he is an underachiever, given his huge talent, and said: “It is great to win with a session to spare and have an extra day off.

“I don’t fear anyone. If I play my game, then I fancy winning. I am supposed to have talent but I have never done it here.

“It used to annoy me, seeing other people winning titles, less so now.

“I would love to win this but I don’t dwell on it as I used to do. Maybe I’m mellowing in old age.”