Ronnie O’Sullivan took one step closer to winning £500,000 at the Saudi Arabia Masters last night, and he’s thanking his new secret weapon.
The Rocket steamrollered fellow Englishman Joe O’Connor with a brutal display in round five.
O’Connor headed into the contest having lost just one of his first 14 games this season and was feeling confident about his chances.
However, O’Sullivan appeared to roll back the years with a magical display of snooker, smashing his opponent 5-0, scoring one century.
The Rocket will now face Chang Bingyu in the last-16, and after the game, he revealed why he was so good.
O’Sullivan has a new cue, and he loves it.
For years, the Englishman has complained about his cue and the way he’s played despite winning various tournaments, but he is very happy with his new one.
Speaking after beating O’Connor, he said: “I felt I played okay.
“It’s alright playing well in one match, but you have to try and put it together for a whole tournament.
“That’s what I was used to doing, and that’s what I’d like to be able to do again.”
O’Sullivan’s new cue was made by fellow professional Sunny Akani.
Akani is ranked 71 in the world and makes cues in his spare time, and The Rocket loves this one.
And on that, he said: “I’ve got a good cue here.
“Sunny has made me this one, which was great, so I said to him: ‘make me a couple more’.
“Because sometimes you think it might be a fluke if they make a good one. But I’ve used three or four of his cues, and they’re all great.
“So I’m like: ‘fantastic, I might smash this one and just get another one!’
“It is like being an engineer, but just with wood. I wouldn’t have a clue. Sunny is a very intelligent guy, and he makes unbelievable cues. It is just unbelievable.”
Who is up next for O’Sullivan?
If The Rocket wants to claim that £500,000 prize pot, he will need to get past 22-year-old Bingyu.
The Chinese player has never been to the round of 16 across his whole career at a ranking event.
But after seeing off Mark Allen, 5-4, he will face O’Sullivan.
Should the Englishman come through, Kyren Wilson or Si Jahui await.
Wilson has already seen off the seven-time world champion once this season at the Shanghai Masters, and O’Sullivan knows he is in for a game whoever he might face.
He said: “They are phenomenal players. It would be interesting: how would they fare if we were at our best? It would be interesting to see.
“I know you can’t play well all the time, but it would be nice to get into the flow of putting good matches together, and then you can think about winning a few matches ugly to get some trophies.
“I think Kyren was just phenomenal in China. I’ve played him a couple of times, and he plays at a John Higgins sort of level of top play.
“It is probably the biggest compliment you can give someone, but I always like to think that if I’m on it, I can always find a way to win.
“It is great to still be playing at this stage of my career.”