Jimmy White is not sure that firing up Ronnie O’Sullivan before they play is a good idea for Hossein Vafaei, as the Iranian aimed digs at the world number one on Monday.
Vafaei beat Ding Junhui 10-6 in the opening round to book his spot alongside the Rocket in the last 16 and it is going to be a spicy affair after the pair exchanged barbs.
‘Has he been saying much this year?’ O’Sullivan asked on Eurosport after beating Pang Junxu. ‘I think he’s learned to be quiet. Don’t rattle my cage!
‘I’m just having fun. I love it when they call me out, I love it when they give me stick, I love it, it turns me on, I get off on it.
‘I need it to fire me up so I’m hoping someone says something, so I can have a reason to perform. But they’re not going to say it now, they probably realise it’s not a good tactic.’
Vafaei did say something, though, telling the BBC after beating Ding: ‘I think Ronnie O’Sullivan is such a legend, such a good player when he’s on the table. I think he’s such a nice person when he’s sleeping, he’s just such a nice person when he’s asleep, you know what I mean.’
Asked about the illness O’Sullivan was suffering at the weekend, he added: ‘He always finds an excuse for himself, he’s been like that for 30 years!’ Before having a go at an Essex accent as he added: ‘Alright, mate!’
White thinks this is all a risky business for Vafaei, who he rates highly as a player, but thinks he might be making it more difficult for himself by winding up O’Sullivan.
‘I think it dates back to when Ronnie O’Sullivan played him in the qualifier for the German,’ White said on Eurosport. ‘Hossein beat Ronnie 5-0 and Ronnie wasn’t at the races and he smashed them [the balls] up in the last frame.
‘Hossein should have just took that, ok, you’re not trying or whatever, I’m going to win this match. But there seems like there’s something else going on that we don’t really know about.
‘For me, Hossein is such a great snooker player, going to win tournaments, going to be around for a long time.
‘Why fire up the world number one and world champion? When you’re playing a good game, why not go out there and let your snooker do the talking? It’s a little bit of nonsense, for me.’
Alan McManus echoed the thoughts that it is not necessarily a sensible thing to be doing, as a fired up Rocket can be very dangerous.
‘He’s playing a dangerous game because Ronnie doesn’t live in an ivory tower, he will get the message loud and clear, and when he gets the message he’ll act on it,’ said the former Masters champion.
‘That’s my opinion, it’s set up beautifully, there’s going to be some needle there, but it’s going to be a heck of a snooker match as well.’
Despite not advising the comments, McManus is not ruling out a win for Vafaei, who he believes is good enough to lift the world title.
‘I’m going to call it, I’m going to say it right now, I think he can win this championship, I think he’s that good,’ said the Scot. ‘I think he believes it as well.
‘It’s shades of [Zhao] Xintong 18 months ago at the UK Championship. You see something, you can’t really quantify what it is, but he looks right, everything looks where it needs to be.
‘He’s got an X Factor about him, this fella, I’ve not really seen it until this match against Ding today. He’s shown me things that only the very best players can do.
‘A lot of people thought Ding was going to come here and have a shot at this and he took him apart. To be able to do that to Ding Junhui, you’ve got to be special.’
MORE : Hossein Vafaei stokes Ronnie O’Sullivan rivalry: ‘He’s a nice person when he’s sleeping’
MORE : ‘I get off on it’ – Ronnie O’Sullivan still ‘turned on’ by Hossein Vafaei criticism
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