RONNIE O’Sullivan showed glimpses of his very best form as he trounced Ding Junhui 7-1 to win his seventh Premier League title in eight seasons.
O’Sullivan began with a steady break of 52 to take the opening frame, but his opponent failed to capitalise on a shocking safety early in frame two, and he returned to make a 92 to make it 2-0.
‘The Rocket’, who has failed to make his presence felt in major raking events since winning the Premier League title 12 months ago, thrilled the crowd at Hopton-on-Sea with a lightning-fast long red before cannoning into the black at the start of frame three, but a period of scrappy play followed in which both players missed chances. O’Sullivan eventually composed himself to make a frame-clinching 56.
Ding, who has won just two of his seven matches against O’Sullivan, looked poised to pull once back in frame four but he broke down on 42, and O’Sullivan returned to make it 4-0.
The Chinese sensation finally got one on the board in frame five when he took advantage of O’Sullivan’s miss on a black off the spot, and he appeared to be in control in the next until a terrible kick with just three reds left meant he could only sit in his chair and watch his opponent undo all his hard work and make it 5-1.
The kick shook Ding’s confidence, but he managed a break of 60 in frame seven before missing a tough red into the centre pocket, and O’Sullivan responded with a 63 clearance to leave him one away from the title, and a quick-fire 77 in the next sealed his win.
O’Sullivan, who collects £60,000 in prize money, appeared content with his game, just days before the start of the UK Championship. He said: “Last year I wasn’t going to play anymore but got my head right and was able to play on. Now I want to play and I’m enjoying it and that’s the most positive I’ve felt.
“This is one that’s always nice to win. It’s a fantastic crowd, a great weekend of snooker and hopefully it will set me up to win a few more this season.”
PartyPoker.com Premier League: Potters Leisure Resort, Hopton-on-Sea, Norfolk
The Final: Ronnie O’Sullivan 7-1 Ding Junhui
68-31 (Ding 31, O’Sullivan 52), 96-16 (O’Sullivan 92), 80-24 (O’Sullivan 56), 57-43 (Ding 42), 33-70 (Ding 48), 79-52 (O’Sullivan 31 & 48, Ding 36), 63-61 (Ding 60, O’Sullivan 63), 77-0 (O’Sullivan 77)