Snooker ace Ronnie O’Sullivan was on the money after he spotted something intriguing about Kyren Wilson’s performance against Judd Trump.
‘The Warrior’ notched an impressive 6-3 victory over Trump on Saturday to secure his spot in the 2025 Masters final. Wilson is set to take on Shaun Murphy in Sunday’s title decider after ‘The Magician’ dispatched Mark Allen with an identical 6-3 result in their semi-final clash.
It’s been seven long years since Wilson’s narrow 10-7 defeat to Allen in his maiden Masters final, and he’s eager to right past wrongs. Despite the weight of expectation at Alexandra Palace, Wilson looked to be relishing his triumph over Trump mid-match, or so O’Sullivan perceived.
“Yeah, I don’t blag it,” Wilson told Eurosport’s Radzi Chinyanganya, confirming O’Sullivan’s hunch that he enjoys squaring off against Trump. “I don’t just say it because you’ve got to make your opponent feel edgy. I genuinely enjoy it.
“For me… you have your opponents you feel like you’ve got to get past to win these big events. The likes of you [gestures to O’Sullivan] and John [Higgins], you and [Stephen] Hendry, those sorts of players.
“For me, he is one of those players. You know, if I’m gonna be successful in this game, I have to get past that man. So I’ve kind of adapted my mind to enjoy it.”
Facing the world‘s top-ranked snooker player might daunt many, but for Wilson, it’s a challenge he enjoys. The reigning world champion is well-liked on the World Snooker Tour for his humble and relaxed demeanour, which comes through in the way he goes about competition.
The rivalry with Trump isn’t just about performance, either. Their head-to-head in particular holds a dear place in Wilson’s heart, and he recalled a pivotal victory that propelled him into the limelight.
“I think it helped winning early in my career in Shanghai in 2015,” added Wilson as he reminisced about his narrow win over Trump to earn his first ranking title at the Shanghai Masters nearly a decade ago. “So much pressure. I had £400 in my bank account in that final [laughs].
“[Wilson’s wife] Sophie went to Tenerife. We saved up €400, and then she didn’t put nappies in the suitcase with Ryanair to save money, and then she lost it. And then I won that tournament, I beat him in that final, and that was a massive turning point in my life. And that gave me a lot of confidence playing him going forward.”
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