Ronnie O’Sullivan has won the 2022 Cazoo Champion of Champions beating Judd Trump 10-6 in the final at the University of Bolton Stadium live on ITV4 in the UK and broadcasters worldwide.
Ronnie O’Sullivan 10-6 Judd Trump – O’Sullivan wins fourth Cazoo Champion of Champions title
In a rematch of the 2022 World Championship final, O’Sullivan took the early ascendancy with a clearance of 97 after two costly safety errors from Trump. That lead was soon two after Trump missed a red to the middle to let O’Sullivan in to deliver the first century of the match.
Trump made a confidence-boosting plant in the third frame but found no position on a colour. A brief exchange followed before O’Sullivan made 52 and Trump had his chance to step in and make a frame-winning clearance to pink of 51. In the fourth, Trump went in off the green which brought O’Sullivan to the table to swing into a 3-1 lead heading into the first mini-interval.
On return, Trump missed a raking red and split the pack to put O’Sullivan back in who made him pay to make 45 and 33 to ramp up the advantage to 4-1. O’Sullivan was pressing on and made 52 to reach the halfway mark at 5-1. O’Sullivan made it six with 88 in the seventh frame to leave a huge task ahead for Trump.
The response from Trump was as emphatic as the come as the Ace in the Pack delivered his seventh-ever maximum break and only the second in the history of the Cazoo Champion of Champions to an emphatic Bolton crowd at 6-2. That moment was a huge momentum shifter as he stepped up to make 96 and cut the deficit to 6-3 going into the evening session.
Watch the full maximum here – https://youtu.be/7nm-JnGYBLs
EVENING SESSION
When play got underway for the evening, Trump knew he’d need a quick start to stop O’Sullivan making it an early night. O’Sullivan took a firm grip on the frame though after a battle that saw Trump leave a red open for the Rocket to nip in and make 106 to be three away from victory.
Two visits from Trump in the 11th frame brought the pair within three before a fantastic break of 82 by the defending champion in the 12th meant the deficit was at two for the first time since 3-1. Trump’s excellent splitting of the pack from the first colour potted made all the difference. A force was coming in the form of Trump and he made 100 to win the last frame before the final interval and trail by one at 7-6. It was game on.
O’Sullivan came out firing to be within two of victory thanks to a 124, his highest-scoring frame of the night at 8-6. A brief safety battle ensued in frame 15. The frame was a refocussing of the mind for O’Sullivan who was frozen out for large parts of the previous interval. From 124 to 85 in the next for the seven-time world champion to be just one frame away from victory and the £150,000 prize.
Trump said: “I am disappointed with how I played. I thought Ronnie scored heavy. It put me under pressure. Every time you get a chance you have to clear up in one visit and I didn’t do that enough. In the end, his scoring was too heavy. Well done to him. I had nothing to lose (at 6-1 down) so I thought I would go for a maximum and see what happens. It’s even more special to do it in a final against Ronnie. I am disappointed to lose. In my head, I knew if I played my best, I knew I’d have a chance. I don’t think anything from coming second, it’s not good enough. I want to go better. I think Ronnie scored the heaviest this week. Scored the best. He showed he’s the benchmark once again.”
O’Sullivan said: “Judd and I know we didn’t flow. It was a grading performance. I had to graft and graft. I never left anything out there today, my temperament and attitude. I was just trying to stay as professional as possible and in the moment. Never once did I think about the lead because I know what Judd can do. I was pleased I dug in the end. It’s full of good players and you get full crowds so you’re going to play your best. At my age, I need to be playing in front of an audience like this. I tend to do better in this type of tournament.”
