Swail out as Rocket reaches first final
Saturday, 5 May 2001 23:41
Northern Ireland's Joe Swail is out of the Embassy World Snooker Championships following today's final session with Ronnie O'Sullivan, which ended 17-11 at the Crucible. O'Sullivan finally booked his place in snooker's most prestigious final following three semi-final defeats in his nine-year professional career.
The man known as The Rocket will now meet either Matthew Stevens or John Higgins in the final. O'Sullivan was having treatment for depression in the Priory Clinic last June and this season he has hinted more than once about quitting the game or cutting down on the number of tournaments he will play. But in between he has produced some of the best snooker of his career and has already won four tournaments in 2000-2001.
Swail never recovered from a disappointing opening session where he trailed by 6-2, and O'Sullivan never looked back. He entered today's final visit with a commanding 15-9 lead, and although he lost the first, it took the Londoner just four frames to book his place in the final.
And Swail, gracious in defeat, believes that O'Sullivan is playing well enough to secure his first world title. He insisted: "He is definitely playing well enough to win it. I'll be very surprised if he doesn't manage that. He will have a tough final but his game is spot-on, a joy to watch. He is an absolute genius. Peter Ebdon was right when he compared him to Mozart."
A victory for Swail today would have seen him progress into his first final as a professional. He added: "I can't really say I enjoyed it because I did feel an awful lot of pressure. I was desperate to get into my first final. I honestly felt that this was my year. But I let Ronnie get off to a good start and he is the type of player who will not let you get back at him. He's a good front runner. I got hundreds and kept trying really hard but it was just not enough."
Final score:
John Higgins 17-15 Matthew Stevens
Filed by Shane Murray
