Curses are known in sport. Snooker’s most famous hex is the “Crucible Curse”.
The Crucible Curse Explained
Twenty men who have won their first World Snooker Championship title at the iconic Crucible Theatre since the tournament moved there in 1977 have tried to defend it the next year. All 20 have failed.
Everyone, from surprise, one-off champions to the greatest of all time who would go on to dominate their era have fallen short the year after their first world crown.
Stephen Hendry won six world titles in seven years from 1990 to 1996. The lone exception? That was 1991, when the Scot suffered a shock 13-11 defeat in the quarter-finals to the unheralded Steve James.
Steve Davis looked set to be unbeatable, having ruthlessly dominated the 1981 World Championship for his maiden title but was turned over 10-1 by Tony Knowles in the first round the following year, while the legendary Ronnie O’Sullivan followed his 2001 Sheffield success with a 17-13 loss to Hendry in the semi-finals in 2002.
The two men to come closest to breaking the curse are a pair of more unexpected names in Joe Johnson and Ken Doherty – both reaching the final the year after their first (and only) world title, but losing. In fairness, only four all-time greats – Davis, Hendry, O’Sullivan and Mark Selby – have ever won back-to-back World Championships at all, so perhaps the struggles of first-time winners shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise.
Zhao Xintong’s Attempt to Defy History
This year, the poor soul traipsing back to the Crucible trying to defy the snooker gods and their potent hoodoo is Zhao Xintong, who became China’s first-ever snooker world champion in a landmark moment for the sport last May. But, whisper it quietly, Zhao is actually the perfect man to break the curse.
Heavy has been the head that has worn the crown down the years – and no previous champion has had to deal with the burden of expectation from a population of 1.4 billion either – but Zhao has taken it all in his stride. His fearless style of play on the baize, coupled with an unruffled demeanour, shone at last year’s World Championship as he was rarely under pressure i