McGill reckons he has the bottle to land a world title
Man of the moment Anthony McGill has declared he’s got the bottle to win the Betfred World Championship.
The Scottish snooker ace painfully missed out on last year’s Crucible final due to a fluked green in a dramatic 17-16 semi-final defeat to runner-up Kyren Wilson.
But the Glasgow cue man sent defending champion Ronnie O’Sullivan packing 13-12 in a Crucible cracker on Friday night.
And the confident world No. 16 stressed: “I can definitely handle pressure.
“You’ve got to get to the winning point to show that, it’s hard to get to that winning point. That’s tough enough.
“Moments like beating Ronnie at the Crucible just add to the self belief bank.
“IfI’meverinatoughspot, or a decider, I can always look back to that match and there aren’t going to be many bigger moments than that.
“I held it together and it definitely gives you a lot of confidence.”
McGill will lock horns with either 2015 champion Stuart Bingham or Jamie Jones, both qualifiers, for a spot in a second-successive Sheffield semi-final.
“It’s a massive result,” added McGill. “There’s no doubt in my mind that Ronnie really wanted this tournament.
“He’s got sports psychiatrist Steve Peters with him. He’s got every record in the book bar one and he’s going to get it, he’s too good.
“To win that match is such a feather in my cap and a big step forward for me.”
Meanwhile, upbeat O’Sullivan believes he has five years to chase down Scottish legend Stephen Hendry’s record seven Crucible crowns.
O’Sullivan holds the records for most ranking titles (37), most Triple Crown – World Championship, UK Championship and Masters – wins (20), most century breaks (1107), and most maximum 147s (15) during his illustrious career so far.
But Hendry’s elusive Crucible record remains the one scratch left to itch for the Rocket.
“I have probably got another five years to equal Stephen,” admitted the world No 2.
“The way I look after myself, the way I play, I look around and there are some decent players, some very good players.
“I suppose I could get it right maybe one more time. It’s probably the only record I haven’t got so I won’t be too hard on myself.
“Can I still win here? Yeah, yeah. I wouldn’t say that if I didn’t think so,” added O’Sullivan.
“I have to stay in a good frame of mind, turn up. I need to play two good weeks of the year and everyone on my side of the fence is happy.
“It is whether I want it bad or not. I just need to pitch up and play.”
Meanwhile, four-time world champion John Higgins squandered a £55,000 bonus as he missed the 15th black for a magical maximum 147 break in the second session of his match with Mark Williams.
The Scottish potter made a 147 during last year’s event – the first Crucible max since Stephen Hendry in 2012.
And Neil Robertson continued his quest for a second Crucible crown with a 13-9 victory over talented Jack Lisowski.
The Aussie ace and 2010 winner resumed 9-7 up and dropped just two more frames as he raced into the quarter-finals.