Ronnie O’Sullivan says snooker star can win 'multiple world titles' and gives update on future

Ronnie O'Sullivan has tipped a snooker star to win 'multiple' World Championships - and has praised an emerging British talent.

O'Sullivan lost in the second round to John Higgins at the Crucible, but returned to Sheffield two weeks later to play at the World Seniors Championship.

'The Rocket' beat Ken Doherty 4-1 in his first match, before hard-fought wins against Peter Lines and Robert Milkins followed.

O'Sullivan then beat Joe Perry - who he claims could still be competitive on the main tour, a year after he retired - in the final by a 10-4 scoreline.

READ MORE: Ronnie O'Sullivan says World Seniors snooker star 'should still be on tour' despite retirement

With the World Snooker Tour season now over, O'Sullivan has entered the Global Snooker 900 Championship, which is organised by Snooker Legends and streamed exclusively live on Pluto TV.

Snooker 900 events are played to a 15-minute frame time limit, with a 20-second shot clock also in place and a ball in hand rule after a foul is conceded.

Fellow world champions Luca Brecel, Shaun Murphy and Kyren Wilson also signed up for the ongoing Global Championship, with 2026 world finalist Murphy losing 5-3 to the aforementioned Perry in the quarter-finals.

Brecel battled past Austria's Florian Nuessle 5-4 on Friday night in what was a flamboyant display from the Belgian, who pulled off some sensational shots but showed some signs of inconsistency as he looks to rediscover the form that saw him win his first world title in 2023.

O'Sullivan, meanwhile, needed a final frame decider to win 5-4 against Billy Castle, who has spent several years off the main tour but has enjoyed a fine week in Reading.

'The Rocket' then recorded a 6-4 win over Wilson in the semi-final, with the final due to be contested on Sunday.

In an interview with SPORTbible following his win over Castle, O'Sullivan detailed what he enjoys most about Snooker 900 events and how it is helping emerging players.

"It's really important for players who are not on tour to have chances like Snooker 900," he said. "To play for some good prize money on TV, and getting to compete against the pros, is all good experience.

"The shot clock isn't really an issue for me as I'm pretty quick, but it keeps the game moving.

"I really like the ball in hand rule as you don't need to wait for balls to be put back, you just get on with the game.

"A lot of players have said they'd like to see Snooker 900 rules in more tournaments, and that's what we want to do on Pluto."

He described it as 'no surprise' that Perry, who takes on Brecel in the other semi-final in Reading, got to the World Seniors final, adding: "The professional players certainly didn't have their own way."

'He's so exciting to watch' - O'Sullivan backs newest snooker star

One player who is not among the Snooker 900 field this week is China's Wu Yize, who won his first World Championship at the Crucible earlier this month by defeating 2005 champion Murphy 18-17.

He was a black ball away from losing 18-16 to Mark Allen in the semi-final, but Allen agonisingly missed the final colour off the spot.

Wu then held his nerve to pot the black himself and went on to win the final frame.

O'Sullivan believes that, now the Chinese star has won one title, he can go on to win several more.

"He is a special talent and he is so young," he said. "He could win multiple titles. He's so exciting to watch.

"It was impressive [the recovery against Allen], but not surprising to me. In any World Championships there is always going to be moments where you could have lost it, and there are so many good players out there."

READ MORE: Wu Yize reveals 'invaluable' advice Ronnie O'Sullivan gave him before winning World Snooker Championship

The seven-time world champion also credited young British star Stan Moody, who went 7-3 up on Crucible debut in the first round against Wilson before 'The Warrior' fought back to win 10-7.

"I played Stan at an exhibition right before lockdown in Huddersfield," O'Sullivan recalled.

"There was a lot of talk about him way before he got on tour, and he showed this year he can play, for sure."

As for his own plans next season, O'Sullivan says he is already 'working with the sponsors and promoters on my schedule', having operated on a part-time schedule across 2025/26.

He played at the UK Championship in December but pulled out of the following month's Masters due to medical reasons.

O'Sullivan has dropped to 14th in the world rankings ahead of next season, though said in March that any suggestions that his lack of tournament appearances had been affecting his performances were 'complete nonsense'.

The Global Snooker 900 Championship is being streamed exclusively live on Pluto TV, who broadcast all other Snooker 900 events on their dedicated 24/7 channel.