Ronnie O'sullivan Reveals Hong Kong Mentoring of Wu Yize

ronnie o'sullivan said in November that he had been practising quite a bit with Wu Yize in Hong Kong and telling him which parts of his game needed work. The 50-year-old, a seven-time world champion with 41 ranking titles, has now laid out how directly he has been helping one of snooker’s rising Chinese players.

Hong Kong practice sessions

O'Sullivan said, “I was practising quite a bit with Wu Yize in Hong Kong before the tournament that he won.” He added, “I was just telling him certain areas of his game that I think he needs to improve on if he wants to be a winner.”

That is more than loose encouragement. It points to a player still chasing major trophies working side by side with someone already at the top of the sport, using practice time to narrow specific gaps rather than relying on general advice.

Zhao Xintong's praise

The same pattern has shown up with Zhao Xintong. After last year's World Snooker Championship semi-final, O'Sullivan lost to Zhao, who then beat Mark Williams in the final to win the World Snooker Championship.

Zhao did not hide what O'Sullivan had meant to him. “I need to say thank you to Ronnie because he has helped me a lot before. He's my idol,” he said. He also added, “To be honest I didn't want to win this time because I wanted to see him win his eighth here.”

That puts O'Sullivan in a rare position. He is not only competing against the players around him; he is also shaping them, with Zhao and Wu both describing direct contact through practice sessions and messages about matches.

Wu Yize's rise

Wu reached the World Snooker Championship semi-finals for the first time after defeating Hossein Vafaei. The 22-year-old said, “We met a few times during the practice. We messaged each other occasionally to talk about matches. I really appreciate his support.”

For Wu, the connection is not just a passing meeting with a famous name. It is hands-on work with a 50-year-old who has won seven world championships and eight Masters crowns, and who said he was pointing out the areas Wu needed to improve if he wanted to become a winner.

That leaves O'Sullivan influencing two younger Chinese players at different points in their careers: Zhao, who has already won the world title, and Wu, who has just reached the semi-finals for the first time. The next test for both is whether the lessons from Hong Kong and the practice table show up when the pressure rises again.