Ronnie O’Sullivan snatches frame with astonishing ‘cocked hat double’ on final black at World Championship

ByBen Snowball

Updated 01/05/2022 at 15:53 GMT

Ronnie O’Sullivan is widely considered the greatest snooker player in history – and with shots like this, it’s not hard to see why. The Rocket, aiming for a record-equalling seventh world title at the Crucible, was in fine form in the early exchanges of his World Championship final against Judd Trump as he opened up a first session lead. The best-of-35 frame match concludes on Monday.

Ronnie O’Sullivan dropped a party trick dubbed the ‘cocked hat double’ on a re-spotted black in the World Championship final – a showstopper that left Judd Trump feeling “absolutely sick”.

The Rocket, leading 2-1 as a thrilling fourth frame went the distance, was left with a thin cut into the bottom pocket to snatch the frame. But instead of going for that shot, and risk leaving Trump with an easy opening, O’Sullivan improvised.

The six-time world champion crashed the black into three cushions and into the middle pocket, raising the roof inside the Crucible.

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“It’s the cocked hat double to win the frame,” said David Hendon on Eurosport commentary.

“Judd Trump will be absolutely sick. It should have been his. But Ronnie O’Sullivan on a re-spot takes the advantage at the interval. What a massive frame that was.”

Back in the Eurosport studio, Jimmy White and Alan McManus were basking in O’Sullivan’s moment of genius.

“It’s called the cocked hat,” said White.

“Ronnie’s played that if it misses the middle pocket, it [the black] goes to the baulk area [at the top of the table]. You don’t often see it played in snooker. It was a great shot to see.”

‘Great shot to see’ – White salutes O’Sullivan’s ‘cocked hat double’

He continued: “Me and Alan love this shot because this is an old snooker club shot. It’s a golf shot that you play on a snooker table.”

The pot saw O’Sullivan open up a 3-1 lead heading into the interval in the best-of-35 match, which concludes on Monday.

“It’s a brilliant match so far, it’s everything we dreamed it would be,” said McManus.

“We’re only four frames in but there’s so much to get through. We’ve had the first big moment of the final – there’s going to be half a dozen, maybe? 1-0 Ronnie. Those small moments at the high level mean an awful lot.”

In truth, Trump should never have allowed the frame to reach a re-spot finale. The 2019 champion missed a relatively simple red down the cushion – a pot that would have surely clinched the frame – and allowed O’Sullivan to return to the table in pursuit of a snooker.

“This is just an unbelievable miss. OK, he is playing it with his wrong hand…” said White as he reviewed the fourth frame.

The drama was not over. O’Sullivan secured the snooker he needed to get back into the frame before a crazy sequence of events unfolded in Sheffield.

First, O’Sullivan potted the white and green together after a botched safety – a shot branded “diabolical” by White – only for Trump to respond by sending the green (now back on the table) into the jaws from ball in hand.

‘A golf shot!’ – McManus, White relive a crazy frame as O’Sullivan takes it with ‘cocked hat double’

“You can’t do that shot,” scolded White about Trump.

A chaotic and tense frame, which began with an astonishing moment when O'Sullivan had an argument with the referee over the placement of the white, eventually came down to a re-spotted black. Cue some O'Sullivan magic that will be replayed for years to come.

“The early concern [for Trump] is this: Ronnie will win bunches of frames in this final. Can Judd? That’s the question,” said McManus.

“He’ll win frames, he’ll win a couple of frames in a row, but you have to win bunches of them.

“World finals are littered with five, six, seven winning streaks. You have to get that otherwise you’re not going to win.

“Ronnie will do that. Can Judd do it? He’s awesome. But can he keep Ronnie quiet enough for long enough?"

O’Sullivan is bidding to draw level with Stephen Hendry on seven world titles at the Crucible.

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Stream the World Championship and other top snooker live and on-demand on discovery+. You can also watch all the action live on eurosport.co.uk.

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