Mark Selby says Hossein Vafaei has ‘every chance’ of beating Ronnie O’Sullivan at the Crucible this weekend, hailing the Iranian as a player for the big stages in snooker.
There has been something of a war of words between the Prince of Persia and the Rocket, starting when Vafaei said O’Sullivan should retire last year.
The feud has been brought back to life in Sheffield over the last few days, with O’Sullivan warning his rivals not to ‘rattle his cage’ while Vafaei has been happy to do the rattling, saying the Rocket is a ‘nice person when he’s asleep.’
It sets up a must-see second round match between the pair, which is all the more exciting after Vafaei played brilliantly to beat Ding Junhui 10-6 in his opening contest.
Selby is glad to see the trash talk in the build-up, creating interest in the match, and fancies the chances of an upset.
‘For the game in general it shakes it up a bit, gets people involved, gets people interested. I think it was like me and Ronnie a few years ago when he was calling me The Torturer and I was saying things back,’ said Selby after beating Matt Selt in his opener.
‘It’s no different to boxing, I suppose, when they get on well but they jazz it up to make the fight bigger than what it is.
‘It’ll be a good game. I’ve got a lot of respect for Hossein, for him to get where he has in the game, considering when he couldn’t play in every tournament due to his visa issues, because that could have easily done his confidence in.
‘He’s a great player and got every chance against Ronnie, I think.’
Asked whether it is risking from the Iranian because he will have to back up his words, Selby added: ‘He does [back it up].
‘I played him in the Masters. I think he’s a big time player. 2,000 people at the Masters, he’s not been there before and he played great against me there.
‘He’s one of the qualifiers people didn’t want because you know he’s not going to buckle, he thrives on the occasion.
‘It’s going to be a tough game for him, of course, Ronnie is the all-time great and it’s like playing in his backyard, so it’s going to be tough and he needs to get off to a good start, but there’s no reason why he can’t.
‘If you stick with him, he’s only human, everyone feels nerves and misses balls, but if you keep giving him chances then obviously you’re not going to win.’
MORE : Barry Hearn relishing Ronnie O’Sullivan and Hossein Vafaei’s ‘crash, bang, wallop’ rivalry
MORE : Ronnie O’Sullivan vs Hossein Vafaei: The story of their feud ahead of Crucible showdown
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