RELIEVED Jack Lisowski “collapsed over the line” as he fulfilled a childhood dream by beating Ronnie O’Sullivan.
Nine days after he broke new ground in his career by lifting silverware for the first time, Lisowski celebrated a memorable 6-5 win over the Rocket.
Having squandered chances in frames nine and ten, it appeared as if Lisowski would suffer a fifth straight loss to the sport’s greatest cueist.
But in a rollercoaster final frame, in which O’Sullivan crucially fouled on the final green, Lisowski emerged the victor by 63 points to 49 in round three of the International Championship in Nanjing.
Cheltenham-born Lisowski, who had led 5-3, felt exhausted but was pleased he had gained revenge for someone who had once given him a severe beating over the snooker table.
In their previous four encounters, he had not won more than two frames off the seven-time world champion.
Jack-Pot, whose success in the recent Northern Ireland Open was his maiden title win, said: “I feel really tired now, it wore me out.
“Just sort of collapsed over the line. Got lucky when it mattered at the end a few times.
“At 5-3 up, I was thinking, I might beat Ronnie here. It’s such a big deal. Since I was a child I’d watched him.
“We’ve had some games but I’ve never gotten close to him. I had all those things going through my mind and just completely lost my concentration.
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“My cueing went, I was all over the place. Then I got momentum I guess, and a bit of luck at the right time and somehow I managed to win.”
Lisowski – who now faces Barry Hawkins in the last 16 as they chase the £175,000 winners’ jackpot – added: “It’s been an incredible week.
“To win a title, obviously that was the focus for me for 10 or 15 years. And to beat Ronnie is a very special achievement for any player.
“It’s kind of in Ronnie’s hand. If he turns up and plays lights-out snooker, you’re just sort of like a witness to the game.
“For me the wheels came off at the end. But I just carried myself over the line somehow.
“I mean I’ve played him once in the Masters and that’s the only time I’ve ever felt humiliated as a professional. I wasn’t in his league. It was horrible.
“Ronnie and John Higgins are the only two players that have ever kind of made me realise that level that they can get to and which I’m nowhere near.
“I was scared that maybe he’s going to make me look silly. But I think I’m onto something. And if I keep my concentration, my game stands up.”
Meanwhile, Zak Surety crafted a magical 147 break – the second of his career – in his 6-5 International Championship win over Ireland’s Aaron Hill.
It is the 14th perfect break this season, which is one behind the record of 15.
List of all-time Snooker World Champions
BELOW is a list of snooker World Champions by year.
The record is for the modern era, widely considered as dating from the 1968-69 season, when the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) took control of the sport.
The first World Championships ran from 1927 – with a break from 1941-45 because of World War II and 1958-63 because of a dispute in the sport.
Joe Davis (15), Fred Davis and John Pulman (both 8) were the most successful players during that period.
Stephen Hendry and Ronnie O’Sullivan share the record for the most titles in the modern era, with seven each.
- 1969 – John Spencer
- 1970 – Ray Reardon
- 1971 – John Spencer
- 1972 – Alex Higgins
- 1973 – Ray Reardon (2)
- 1974 – Ray Reardon (3)
- 1975 – Ray Reardon (4)
- 1976 – Ray Reardon (5)
- 1977 – John Spencer (2)
- 1978 – Ray Reardon (6)
- 1979 – Terry Griffiths
- 1980 – Cliff Thorburn
- 1981 – Steve Davis
- 1982 – Alex Higgins (2)
- 1983 – Steve Davis (2)
- 1984 – Steve Davis (3)
- 1985 – Dennis Taylor
- 1986 – Joe Johnson
- 1987 – Steve Davis (4)
- 1988 – Steve Davis (5)
- 1989 – Steve Davis (6)
- 1990 – Stephen Hendry
- 1991 – John Parrott
- 1992 – Stephen Hendry (2)
- 1993 – Stephen Hendry (3)
- 1994 – Stephen Hendry (4)
- 1995 – Stephen Hendry (5)
- 1996 – Stephen Hendry (6)
- 1997 – Ken Doherty
- 1998 – John Higgins
- 1999 – Stephen Hendry (7)
- 2000 – Mark Williams
- 2001 – Ronnie O’Sullivan
- 2002 – Peter Ebdon
- 2003 – Mark Williams (2)
- 2004 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (2)
- 2005 – Shaun Murphy
- 2006 – Graeme Dott
- 2007 – John Higgins (2)
- 2008 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (3)
- 2009 – John Higgins (3)
- 2010 – Neil Robertson
- 2011 – John Higgins (4)
- 2012 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (4)
- 2013 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (5)
- 2014 – Mark Selby
- 2015 – Stuart Bingham
- 2016 – Mark Selby (2)
- 2017 – Mark Selby (3)
- 2018 – Mark Williams (3)
- 2019 – Judd Trump
- 2020 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (6)
- 2021 – Mark Selby (4)
- 2022 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (7)
- 2023 – Luca Brecel
- 2024 – Kyren Wilson
- 2025 – Zhao Xintong
Most World Titles (modern era)
- 7 – Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O’Sullivan
- 6 – Ray Reardon, Steve Davis
- 4 – John Higgins, Mark Selby
- 3 – John Spencer, Mark Williams
- 2 – Alex Higgins
