China’s Zhao Xintong into first World Championship semi-final, to face Ronnie O’Sullivan
Zhao takes on seven-time champion, bidding to be the first to claim Crucible title as an amateur, and become China’s first winner
China’s Zhao Xintong has set his sights on becoming the first amateur to win the World Snooker Championship after reaching the semi-finals for the first time.
The 28-year-old on Thursday began his last-four clash with seven-time champion Ronnie O’Sullivan at Sheffield’s Crucible Theatre, having the previous day beaten Chris Wakelin 13-5 before O’Sullivan overcame Zhao’s compatriot Si Jiahui 13-9 in the quarter-finals.
A winner of the UK Championship before his ban, Zhao would be the first world champion from China, and indeed Asia, should he go all the way in Sheffield.
“When I was a kid, watching snooker on TV and seeing the semis and final here, it was such a powerful image,” said Zhao before facing O’Sullivan in the first best-of-33 match of his career.
“And now that I’m standing there myself, I feel really happy. Of course, I still hope I can go one step further and win the semi-final, maybe even challenge for the title.”
However, Zhao, who has already gone further than any previous amateur, admitted after his emphatic defeat of Wakelin that he was battling to sustain his intensity through the notoriously taxing tournament.