Netease Sports reported on March 25th that Handelli, Rocket O 'Sullivan, Wizards Higgins and Golden Left-handed Williams were also called the four kings of snooker, but in recent years, with the continuous growth of age, their status fluctuated. The "four kings" of this year's China Open all aim at the champion, and it is still inconclusive who can achieve it in the end.
As a seven-time World Championship champion and ranked first in the world for eight consecutive years, Hendry is the most admired player by China fans except Ding Junhui. Hendry, who is 38 years old, has won 36 rankings, but the last time he won this honor was in the Malta Cup in 2005. In the past two years, although Hendry's performance fluctuated little, due to the decline of physical strength and technical quality, it is difficult for the "billiards emperor" to find the feeling of unifying the rivers and lakes in the snooker world. Nevertheless, Handley's performance in the China Open was commendable. In 2005, he lost to Ding Junhui in the final, which made the latter a miracle for foreign players to win the ranking championship. In 2006, Handley lost to mark williams after successfully advancing to the quarter-finals. If Hendry wants to win the China Open, he will face O 'Sullivan and Higgins one after another. However, after all, Hendry was once a legend, ranking first in the world at the end of the 2005/06 season. I believe Hendry will give a perfect performance to China fans and make unremitting efforts for the champion of the 37th ranking tournament.
After winning the world championship in 2004, "Rocket" O 'Sullivan fell into a downturn. His eccentric personality obviously reduced his concentration on the game, which can definitely be described as a hasty response. He didn't take the ordinary bonus seriously enough. Instead, he devoted himself to rewarding more events and even participated in the nine-ball competition to earn more appearance fees, which left a bad impression on the fans. Even so, O 'Sullivan's talent is unparalleled. He seems to have returned to normal this season. Northern Ireland Cup lost to Ding Junhui and won the runner-up. The UEFA Cup successfully defended its title. The Masters avenged Ding Junhui for the third time, and the paul hunter Memorial Tournament scored the seventh perfect score in his career. In 2006 China Open, O 'Sullivan lost 5-0 to King Wattana of Thailand in the first round, and was pointed out that he did not play his best after the match. O 'Sullivan will "owe" China fans this favor if he hits China again. Presumably, "Rocket" will not disappoint fans who care about and support him.
Higgins, a "Scottish wizard", is the champion of 1998 World Championships, and scored 147 five times. Higgins is still a hot figure in the 2005/06 season. He won the Grand Prix and Masters in succession, and the China Open also reached the final and won the runner-up. Unfortunately, Higgins also fell into a downturn in the 2006/07 season. Northern Ireland Cup lost to Ding Junhui, the Grand Prix lost, Malta Cup and Welsh Open were eliminated in the first round, and the temporary world ranking fell from the first to the third. China Open will be Higgins' rally, and Stephen Lee's exit will not cause him too much trouble before he can advance to the quarter-finals, so he has a great chance to get good results.
Mark williams, the "golden left hand", has long been unable to reproduce the glory of winning two world championships in that year. The champion of China Open in 2006 is his only masterpiece in recent years. After defeating Hendry and Ding Junhui, the last champion, they joined hands with Higgins in the final, and finally won the first ranking match in three years with their superb skills and super psychological quality. In the 2006/07 season, Williams was once troubled by injuries and his state was not as good as before. Basically, he didn't make any commendable achievements. Several rankings were eliminated in the first round, and the temporary world ranking has fallen to 10. Such a bad situation led Williams to retire himself. The China Open and World Championships starting next month will be his last chance. I hope Williams can seize the opportunity to reproduce the "golden left hand" style of that year.