Wu Yize has revealed that Ronnie O’Sullivan text him with some advice at a crucial moment in the World Snooker Championship final, helping turn the tide in his favour.
The 22-year-old beat Shaun Murphy 18-17 in one of the great Crucible finals, the first deciding frame contest in a showpiece since 2002.
It was the climax of a brilliant tournament, which saw Wu down Lei Peifan, Mark Selby, Hossein Vafaei and Mark Allen, with his semi-final win over the Northern Irishman also coming in a deciding frame.
Wu produced relentlessly attacking snooker throughout the event, sinking long pots and making big breaks from unlikely positions.
However, there was a period in the final that got very sticky for him as Murphy moved into the ascendency on Monday afternoon.
The Chinese star started the last day of the event 10-7 ahead after looking excellent on Sunday night, but he wobbled in the third session and the Magician won five frames on the spin.
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With the Englishman firmly in charge, there looked every chance Murphy could win all eight frames in the session but Wu managed to stop the rot and win the final three, with two half-centuries.
It was an impressive way to bounce back and the champion has revealed that the Rocket played a part in the recovery which proved key over the piece.
‘At that time my goal was to extend the lead. I wasn’t playing really that bad, but I wasn’t focussed to do what I do best,’ Wu told the Snooker Club podcast. ‘I went out to try to give myself some time to cool down.
‘Ronnie texted me telling me to stay focussed. To be calm and also to try to play to my own strengths. I was really happy I was able to do that.’
The seven-time world champion has been something of a mentor for Wu over the last season, working on the practice table with him ahead of his maiden ranking success at the International Championship in November.
O’Sullivan predicted that Wu would become world champion and world number one in the near future, with the first of those achievements already ticked off.
‘He’s been helping me so much,’ said Wu of the Rocket. ‘He taught me how to handle the situation during the match, how to handle different situations on the table.
‘It’s definitely experience I’ve learned from him, I benefit from the time I spent with him a lot.’
Speaking in February at the World Grand Prix, O’Sullivan said of Wu: ‘If I like them I pass knowledge on. If I don’t they don’t get two minutes of my time. I choose the ones I feel a bit of a connection to.
‘I think Wu Yize is gong to be world number one, I’d give him three years, definitely going to be world champion very, very soon, phenomenal player.’
He added: ‘I practiced with him for two or three days in Hong Kong not long ago and it’s not until you practice with someone that you can really appreciate how good they are. After day two I was like, this kid is really special.
‘I’d just love to go and see him fulfil his potential as a professional. He’s only 22. I expect him to do a lot of great things in snooker.’
The Rocket is not always known for accuracy with his predictions on young talent in snooker, but he has been bang on with this one.