Scottish Open 2022: Ronnie O'Sullivan urges 'big-time player' Gary Wilson to play with freedom and abandon
/dnl.eurosport.com/sd/img/placeholder/eurosport_logo_1x1.png){kind=logo}
Updated 03/12/2022 at 18:07 GMT
Gary Wilson moved into the final of the Scottish Open with a 6-4 win over Thepchaiya Un-Nooh at Meadowbank Sports Centre. Wilson is not 100% happy with his game, and world champion Ronnie O'Sullivan urged him to adopt a cavalier approach to his snooker. Stream the Scottish Open and more top snooker action live and on-demand on discovery+.
‘A statement contribution’ - Wilson takes lead with brilliant century against Thepchaiya
Ronnie O’Sullivan has urged Gary Wilson to play with freedom and abandon in a bid to realise his potential.
Wilson beat Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 6-4 to reach the Scottish Open final, with the man from Wallsend knocking in three centuries in an impressive post-interval display.
The win over Thepchaiya came 24 hours after a quarter-final victory over Kyren Wilson that Gary Wilson described as "disgusting".
Wilson said he changed his mindset in the interval against Thepchaiya, and O’Sullivan feels playing with freedom is how the 37-year-old needs to approach the game.
"I think with Gary he is such a good player it is about having a Plan B when it is not going right,” O’Sullivan said in the Eurosport studio. “It is ‘what should I do? Is it play on instinct, is it just forgetting about technique, focusing on one ball at a time to get myself where I am playing brilliantly?'
“He is a handful for everybody, and that is why it is frustrating because he can be so good.
“He wears his heart on his sleeve, he lets it all out. He is an honest guy and I love him. He is great. I love his game. His game is a powerhouse game.
“If I was his coach I would tell him to play with abandon. He is such a solid player. Technically wise, with this you have to play with abandon because that mixture of abandon and solidness is a dangerous combination.
“As a snooker player he has the nuts and bolts in the right position, he just needs to play with freedom and instinct and when he does that he is a dangerous player.”
O’Sullivan urged Wilson to take a note from the approach of six-time world champion Steve Davis.
“Sometimes you have to force yourself to fake it to make it,” O’Sullivan said. “Steve Davis said you have to play like it means everything but it means absolutely nothing, and it is very hard to do. Don't let your career go by without trying it.
“He can get his name on a trophy plenty of times.
“He is a big-time player and you have to find that secret to what makes us go to the next level. It would be a shame to see him not win a few tournaments.”
Reflecting on his performance at the Meadowbank Sports Centre on Saturday, Wilson said it was a match of contrasts.
“I went into the interval and had a complete reset,” Wilson said. “I said I was just going to play on instinct, just totally change what I am thinking.
“I still missed a few, my cue ball was all over the place, but I still managed to pot a few.
“It was like a match of two halves. First half was terrible, I then played on instinct and enjoyed it a little bit. I would like to continue playing like that.
“It is swings and roundabouts. But I have got to the stage in my career that I am old enough and stupid enough to know that I have to play on instinct a lot more and see what that brings.”
- - -
Stream the Scottish Open and more top snooker action live and on-demand on discovery+. You can also watch Seventh Heaven, a two-part show about Ronnie O’Sullivan’s historic World Championship win last season, on demand now.
Scan me
Related Topics
Share this article
Advertisement
Advertisement