A feeling of sympathy even in the furniture. This is a moment that will be remembered for years. How is this possible in the World Cup?
I was hardly the only one with those feelings as the red balls flew across the table Ronnie O’Sullivan’s and Hossein Vafaei in the second period of the match.
Vafaei shocked the snooker crowd by hitting the white ball full on the red deck from the opening shot.
The starting stroke of snooker is supposed to be played in such a way that there is no room for the opponent to pocket. Vafaein clucked his tongue out of complete indifference and was a sort of surrender.
If the audience watching the match was shocked by the 28-year-old Iranian player’s shot selection, the same cannot be said about O’Sullivan.
The defending world champion sat his 19-year-younger rival for the next few minutes by building a 78-point hitting streak that was enough for the set win.
Over a year of resentment
Vafaei has made it clear that he has no respect for O’Sullivan.
Exactly one year ago, just before the 2022 World Cup tournament, he gave an interview in which he hoped the English star would end his career. The reason Vafaei has said is that O’Sullivan does not respect his opponents.
Last Sunday, Vafaei continued in that vein after winning his opening match at the World Championships and securing a place in the second round against O’Sullivan.
– Ronnie O’Sullivan is a legend, a great player. As a person, he is comfortable when he sleeps. You know what I mean, Vafaei said in an interview with the British broadcasting company BBC.
Vafaei continued his defiant line on Eurosport and threatened to gag O’Sullivan.
The Iranian’s grudge dates back to the meeting between the two in October 2021. At that time, O’Sullivan fell in the qualifiers of the German Masters tournament on the same starting shot as Vafaei now in Sheffield. The 2021 match ended 5–0 for Vafaei.
The English media have hinted that the situation in question was the likely reason for Vafaei’s resentment. Vafaei has neither admitted nor denied the claim.
The copy of O’Sullivan’s shot presented by Vafaei on Friday has its own kind of answer that puts an end to the speculation.
Broke the most sacred rule
With his actions, Vafaei broke the sport’s most sacred, unwritten rule: don’t be disrespectful to the game.
As stated, O’Sullivan has also fallen into the same trap as Vafaei. In fact, O’Sullivan is in a league of his own in his lack of respect for his opponent and the game in his 30-plus year professional career.
But when it comes to the most talented, successful and spectacular player of all time, much can be forgiven.
What makes Vafaei’s behavior even more special is that O’Sullivan has calmed down in his outings and has been able to keep his focus on the game better than at the end of the last decade. Thanks to that, O’Sullivan has won two of the three previous world championships.
A lot as a guard
Vafaei is one of the most talented players who have broken through in recent years, both technically and in terms of game intelligence. Snooker’s umbrella organization has put a lot on Vafaei’s shoulders in its pursuit of the Middle East market.
Vafaei gained a lot of new supporters in Takuu when he knocked down Asia’s all-time player on Sunday Ding Junhui with a brilliant performance.
The Crucible theater, which hosts the WC tournament, is the tightest and most pressurized venue on the professional tour, where it would be important for the player to get the audience on his side. This is where Vafaei succeeded against Ding.
On the other hand, after the brain fart they saw against O’Sullivan, the vast majority of those who followed the match would not have minded if O’Sullivan had left Vafaei to zero. Vafaei further underlined his bad behavior by grinning at O’Sullivan, who was sitting next to him, after the losing game.
The case will surely tax Vafaei’s fanbase with a heavy hand and will be a kind of burning mark for the Iranian that will be associated with him for years to come.
Vafaei did a favor only for the Australian Quinten to Hanniwho, as the previous player in the Crucible theater, hit the red deck’s 1000th with his opening strike in 2002.
Hann was remembered by the snooker community not only as a hot-tempered player, but also as a player who received an eight-year ban for match-fixing. In other words, associating with Hanni is not recommended in any way.
A peculiar case
What makes Vafaei’s Friday incident unique is its modus operandi.
Since nothing out of the ordinary happened in the first set, which O’Sullivan started and won, it is possible to assume that Vafaei had already planned to start the second set before the start of the match.
This has not been seen on the professional snooker tour, but the complete destruction of the deck from the opening shot has been the result of the player’s frustration with the events of the match.
This was, for example, the case of Hanni in the 2002 World Cup tournament, when the Aussie played Paul Hunter against and was losing the set 1–4.
Vafaei fell to O’Sullivan’s feet in the first period, 2-6 in the end, which the experts considered to be an inch of justice due to Vafaei’s disrespectful behavior.
Answers to the reasons for Vafaei’s actions will probably be received on Sunday, when the match is supposed to be played out. On Saturday, O’Sullivan and Vafaei will play eight sets. O’Sullivan needs seven sets to advance to the quarterfinals.
As a piece of information for the Iranian, a statistical fact from Hanni’s World Cup match more than 20 years ago offers comfort. Hann, who destroyed the deck with the power of the pack, finally managed to rise from a 3–6 loss position to a 10–9 victory.
No matter how you go about the match between Vafaei and O’Sullivan, it would be good for Vafaei’s reputation if adjectives like humble and professional could be attached to him in the last two episodes of the fight.
Friday’s shameful action must not be repeated.