Ronnie O'Sullivan takes lead

By Geet Sethi

SHEFFIELD, MAY 4. The unpredictability and sudden lapses in concentration, which have hindered his progress in the Embassy World snooker championship in the past, briefly resurfaced to deny Ronnie O'Sullivan a more comprehensive and unassailable lead at the conclusion of the second session of his semifinal encounter against Ireland's Joe Swail.

The 26-year-old World No. 4, who commenced the second session of his semifinal encounter in the 2001 Embassy World snooker championship leading 6-2, ended the session 10-6, maintaining his four-frame advantage over an opponent, who is clearly a notch or two below him in sheer class and ability.

O'Sullivan, who has exhibited a far more focussed approach this year and has proceeded into the semi finals with emphatic victories over Andy Hicks, Dave Harold and Peter Ebdon, started the second session in dramatic fashion. Two centuries, 108 and 119 gave substantial proof of his genius and his quick paced and keen eye provided an ominous warning to Swail, who in the space of 19 minutes was looking at a disheartening 8-2 deficit.

Against such an inspired burst of scoring only a player with immense reserves of self-belief could contain the creative genius of the world's most talented cueist. Swail responded as only he can. Having already given overwhelming evidence of his capabilities under pressure - he effected a 10-9 first round victory over Sean Storey, a 13-12 second round triumph over Mark Williams, the defending champion and a 13-11 win over compatriot Patrick Wallace in the quarter-final - the world no.16 once again responded. ``I don't know what it is when my back is to the wall. But I just seem to play better when I am down'', he had said after eliminating Williams in the second round. One wonders where he gets the rush of adrenaline. For a cueist who defies all the principles of copybook technique - he has a rounded cue arm - his consistency in staging surprising and sometimes improbable recoveries is intriguing and has been the topic of much debate and comment.

Last year, he came from four frames down with five to play to overcome John Parrott in the second round of the world championship. These statistics negate the theory that his victories this year may be just a fluke. He had reached the semifinal last year and even though, it seems unlikely that he will proceed further in the event this year, his grit and heart must be praised.

Swail won the next two frames with efforts of 51 and a superb 32 clearance to keep his hopes alive at 8-4. It was in the 12th frame that one saw O'Sullivan flirting with his unpredictability. Casual and distracted, he briefly lost concentration but recovered his composure to win the 13th and 14th with runs of 51 & 54. One saw a side of Sulllivan, which is in sharp contrast to his true self. He has learnt to imbibe elements of dogged perseverance when his inspiration and creativity go into hibernation. O'Sullivan now had stretched his lead to six frames and it was vital for Swail to pull back the last two if he were to keep his chances in the match alive. He uncorked a decisive 92 and in a scrappy last frame, managed to pot the crucial colours to end the session behind only four frames.

Swail must consider himself happy with the outcome of this session where both players won four frames each. However, he will need a highly unlikely combination where in he plays at his best and O'Sullivan's form plummets, to be able to overcome a man, who has produced outstanding snooker for the last ten days without reaching his peak yet.

On Thursday night, John Higgins, winner of the UK championship last November, scored the initial advantage against Mathew Stevens by establishing a 5-3 lead at the conclusion of the first session. Stevens has lost only eleven frames in three matches which included an unexpected 13-5 victory over Stephen Hendry, commenced the encounter with a fluent 100, the 99th century of his professional career, but then accumulated only 57 points in the next three frames to trail 3-1. The remaining four frames were shared equally, with Higgins compiling breaks of 95 & 92, while the world no.6 constructed runs of 68 and 70.

lThe scores: Semifinals (Best of 33 frames): Ronnie O'Sullivan leads Joe Swail 10-6 after two sessions; John Higgins leads Mathew Stevens 5-3 after the first session.

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