The Rocket will bag a magnificent seven
Man-of-the-moment Neil Robertson has piled the pressure on title rival Ronnie O’sullivan ahead of next week’s World Championship.
The Crucible mind games have already begun, even before a ball has been struck in anger at snooker’s very own Theatre of Dreams.
Aussie ace Robertson is the red-hot favourite to finally become a multiple world champion after winning four big titles this season.
And world No. 1 O’sullivan labelled Robertson as “the man to beat” ahead of the 17-day marathon which kicks off on Saturday.
But the 2010 winner believes the Rocket has his best chance to equal Scottish legend Stephen Hendry’s record haul of seven wins at the sport’s spiritual Sheffield home this year.
“Ronnie looks in brilliant form to go for Stephen Hendry’s record,” stressed Robertson (inset), who won the recent elite eight-man Tour Championship ahead of his Crucible challenge.
“This is probably the most focused that I’ve seen him for a long time actually and that makes him dangerous.
“He’ll be feeling really good about his game going to the Crucible for sure.
“I played him at the Tour Championship, and if Ronnie plays anywhere like the way he played there then he’ll blitz his way to the one table set up. There’s no one who can kind of really withstand that.
“He didn’t play any stupid shots against me, didn’t do anything silly, didn’t really miss anything easy. His safety was unbelievable.
“Physically he looks amazing as well around the table, he looks really fit. He’s doing a lot of gym work and that sort of stuff.”
O’sullivan beat Robertson in December’s World Grand Prix final to end his uncharacteristic five-final losing streak.
And he was at his brilliant heavy scoring best last week in Llandudno as he became the first player to make FIVE century breaks in successive matches.
The Rocket, who has been the game’s shining star for three decades, is widely regarded as the greatest player ever.
And the only record that alludes him heading into the twilight of his illustrious trophy-laden career is Hendry’s Crucible triumphs.
Thunder From Down Under Robertson insisted: “He is the greatest player ever, no doubt about it.
“You look at the players on the tour now it’s never been as hard as this ever. There are players ranked 60, 70 or 80 able to play world-class snooker.
“It’s not like before where you could walk through to quarters or semi-finals of events where you’d have to play badly not to play through.
“For Ronnie to be able to do it over a few decades, you have to count longevity into that as well and that’s incredible.
“I don’t think he needs to win a seventh to be the all-time greatest.
“There are probably some Stephen Hendry fans who are holding on to that record before they can admit it.”
Scott Donaldson survived a real scare yesterday to keep his World Championship qualifying hopes alive.
The Perth potter was on the verge of failing to qualify for the Crucible when he trailed China’s Li Hang 5-3.
But the battling Scot, who last qualified in 2019, hit back to win three frames on the spin to clinch a dramatic 6-5 win at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield.
And with victory Donaldson, the world No 49, has to beat England’s Allan Taylor on Tuesday to qualify for the Crucible for only the second time in his career.