O’Sullivan’s Stunning Comeback: Rocket Fires Four Centuries to Edge Taylor in Thriller
Ronnie O’Sullivan delivered a thrilling comeback in the opening round of the International Championship, overcoming world number 76 Allan Taylor 6–5 in a dramatic encounter in Nanjing, China. O’Sullivan, a seven-time world champion, found himself trailing by two frames on three separate occasions, with Taylor leading 4–2 at one point. But the “Rocket” showed his resilience, firing off a remarkable sequence of breaks—100, 119, and 129—to seize the lead for the first time in the match.
Taylor, however, wasn’t ready to fold. He responded with a solid break of 53 in the 10th frame to force a decider, but O’Sullivan was undeterred. With the match in the balance, the world number five produced a masterful 128 clearance to clinch victory in style. Earlier in the match, O’Sullivan had faced a tough spot, trailing 3–1, but capitalized on a mistake from Taylor, who went in-off on the black. O’Sullivan pounced with a 48 clearance to close the gap, eventually leveling the score at 3–3.
The key turning point came in the decider, where O’Sullivan’s cue-ball control was impeccable. A stunning long red opened the frame, and with the balls perfectly positioned, he sealed the match with ease. This victory sets up a second-round clash with England’s Sanderson Lam.
At 49 years old, O’Sullivan continues to carefully select his tournaments, having already reached the quarter-finals at the Shanghai Masters and Xi’an Grand Prix, while finishing runner-up at the Saudi Arabia Masters earlier in the season.
Elsewhere, world champion Zhao Xintong cruised past England’s Oliver Brown 6–1, starting with a scintillating 135 break. In an upset, last year’s International Championship finalist, Chris Wakelin, fell 6–2 to China’s Jiang Jun, ranked 111th. Meanwhile, in a historic moment, two-time women’s world champion Bai Yulu set a new benchmark with a 145 break—the highest ever by a female player in professional snooker—although she was ultimately edged out 6–4 by the 14-year-old Wang Xinzhong in the pre-qualifiers.
