Zhao Xintong became the fourth player to throw "8 consecutive whips" against O'Sullivan at the World Snooker Championships

On May 2, Beijing time, the 2025 World Snooker Championship will start the second stage of the semifinals. As a result, Chinese player Zhao Xintong won 8 games in a row, and kept a clean sheet at this stage of the seven-time world champion "Rocket" O'Sullivan. At the end of the two stages, the two-man game came to 12-4, and Zhao Xintong took the lead. The semi-finals of this Snooker World Championship will be played in 33 rounds and 17 wins (8/8/8/9), which will be held in four stages, and the third stage of the match between the two sides will be played at 02:00 Beijing time on May 3.

Zhao Xintong became the fourth player to throw "8 consecutive whips" against O'Sullivan at the Crucible Theater

In the first stage of the 1st local time with a score of 4-4, Zhao Xintong won all eight games on the morning of the 2nd local time, becoming the fourth player to throw out the "8 consecutive whips" against O'Sullivan at the Crucible Theater. The 49-year-old Englishman O'Sullivan has made no secret of his struggles on the pitch since throwing away his old clubs in the 2025 Snooker Champions League in January, and he decided to make further changes in the match played on Thursday night. However, that didn't have the desired effect, as "The Rocket" missed a series of chances and his opponent ruthlessly punished him with a brutal eight-game winning streak.

The opponent ruthlessly punished O'Sullivan in a brutal way of winning eight games in a row

Former British champion Zhao Xintong competed as an amateur at the World Championships, and his on-court performance suggested he may be ready to become the first Chinese to win the title in Sheffield, according to British media after the match. The 28-year-old earned a standing ovation from the crowd at the Crucible Theatre after gaining complete control of the second stage of the tournament with a one-shot 112, a 115, and five more single-stroke 50+. Zhao Xintong now only needs five games to enter the final of this World Championships.