Ronnie O'Sullivan compares 'incredible' Hong Kong Masters crowd to ATP Finals tennis - 'it’s unbelievable'
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Updated 10/10/2022 at 07:12 GMT
Fresh from his joyous triumph at the Hong Kong Masters on Sunday, Ronnie O'Sullivan has likened the atmosphere of the event and the fans there to the prestigious ATP Finals in London. O'Sullivan, who said he had attended the end-of-season tennis event at the O2 Arena prior to its switch to Turin, was blown away by the "incredible" crowd that was in place for the event in Hong Kong.
‘A special one!’ – O’Sullivan collects trophy after winning Hong Kong Masters
Ronnie O'Sullivan has compared the "incredible" Hong Kong Masters crowd to the one he witnessed at the ATP Tour Finals tennis event in London.
The Rocket clinched the title in Hong Kong Masters with a 6-4 triumph over local hero Marco Fu, and made a big point of declaring that the tournament was "the best I've probably ever played in".
The showpiece final was watched by a remarkable 8,500 fans inside the Hong Kong Coliseum, with the atmosphere certainly unique to the World Snooker Tour with audible reactions to shots and moments in the match.
It was an experience that blew O'Sullivan away and he paid tribute to both the event and the hugely-committed fans after he sealed the victory over Fu to rapturous applause inside the arena.
“It’s unbelievable. Forget winning the tournament, to play in front of 9,000 fans is just incredible," the 39-time ranking event winner said as he reflected on the occasion.
"I’ve been to the ATP tennis in London before and it felt something similar to that. I’ve never experienced it and I didn’t think I would experience that. It is just incredible. The best event I’ve ever played in my life.
“It is a different type of nerves to the Crucible. That is evil, on top of you and intense. Here you have the fans, but there is a bit more space.
"I felt some nice nerves and I enjoyed the occasion. I wanted it to carry on, so I am disappointed the tournament is over.
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“Everyone is happy to see Marco come back. He has had a great tournament, beat two fantastic players and pushed me all the way.
"He had a 147 in front of his home crowd. There was a lot of expectation from the fans on him and he has delivered.”
Speaking in his victory speech immediately after the match, O'Sullivan also found the time to praise the environment of the Hong Kong Coliseum and the supporters inside it.
"First of all, I want to say, this is the best tournament I have probably ever played in. I’ve never played in front of more than 3,000 fans, and that was at the Queen Elizabeth," he said.
"To have 9,000 fans watching a snooker match [is] unheard of. So hopefully we can come back year [after] year because the fans have been fantastic.
"It has probably been the best week as a snooker player to play snooker. So I just want to thank everyone for making this such a special tournament.
"It’s been a hard three years for everybody. For us to be able to play snooker in Hong Kong, and for the Hong Kong people to come and be able to watch live sport again, I think we are the first sport to do that, is just great.
"I have to thank the Hong Kong Snooker Association for making this happen.”
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