Ronnie OSullivan singles out snooker star who has amazing future in the game

EXCLUSIVE Snooker superstar Ronnie O'Sullivan has hand picked on star who he believes will be the next face of the sport after a breakthrough season

Comments

Sport

Will Schofield Senior Sports Reporter

08:00, 12 Oct 2025

[Ronnie O'Sullivan]

Ronnie O'Sullivan has heaped praise on Zhao Xintong(Image: VCG via Getty Images)

Ronnie OSullivan has singled out Zhao Xintong as the next snooker superstar.

Xintong, 28, dumped the Rocket, 49, out of the World Championship in the semi-finals earlier this year. I think he's got an amazing future in the game, OSullivan told Daily Star Sport.

"He came back from three years off and played great stuff in the qualifying tournaments," and the young star would do more than just qualifying for the World Snooker Championships - taking the entire tournament against Mark Williams

"He came into the World Championships - no ones surprised he won because hes such a good talent. Considering he was away from the game for as long as he was, to come in and play like he didI felt good for him."

Xintong faced OSullivan in the semi-finals and emerged victorious in a match that felt like a changing of the guard. The young star raced to an 17-7 win, leaving OSullivan unable to find an answer.

[Zhao Xintong playing a shot using a rest]

Zhao Xintong won the World Snooker Championship earlier this year(Image: Getty Images)

He played me when I wasnt at my bestI was having cue and tip problems. Then he went on to play Mark Williams in the final.

"I dont think anyones ever had a tougher draw than that at the Worlds, OSullivan admitted.

He caught me and Mark at the right time, but Im not taking anything away from him. He still had to do the job at the Crucible, which isnt an easy venue. He proved it didnt bother him.

[]

Don't miss a thing with Daily Star Sport updates!

Want to keep up with all of the latest sport news? Well then sign up for the brilliant Daily Star Sport email newsletter!

From football, darts, boxing and UFC, to horse racing, F1, snooker and golf, get it all in your email inbox.

How do you sign up?

Simply click on this link, then provide your email address and that's it, job done. You'll receive an email with all of the top football stories.

You can also sign up for our Daily Star Football email for all the latest transfer news and breaking stories, right here

"Great for him. Im sure hell win many more titles and eventually be number one in the world.

The result means OSullivan is still chasing history, though he insists it isnt what drives him: "Everybody talks about the eighth world title. I've never really been bothered by that."

Article continues below

However, the Rocket said he thinks he's got a "good three or four attempts" and it would be nice to have someone out front alone on eight.

[Dailystar Icon]

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Choose Daily Star as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.

[Google Preferred Source Badge]

At Reach and across our entities we and our partners use information collected through cookies and other identifiers from your device to improve experience on our site, analyse how it is used and to show personalised advertising. You can opt out of the sale or sharing of your data, at any time clicking the "Do Not Sell or Share my Data" button at the bottom of the webpage. Please note that your preferences are browser specific. Use of our website and any of our services represents your acceptance of the use of cookies and consent to the practices described in our Privacy Notice and Terms and Conditions.