Fu - relishing O'Sullivan test (Getty Images)
FU: I DON'T FEAR THE ROCKET
By Ronnie Esplin, PA Sport
Hong Kong star Marco Fu insists he was happy at being drawn against tournament
favourite Ronnie O'Sullivan in the Embassy World Championship.
Fu has yet to win a game at the Crucible in three attempts and will take on
the in-form Essex player next Tuesday.
Most players' hearts would have sunk at the prospect of such a tough opener
but Fu claimed he would rather take on a higher-ranked opponent than an
outsider.
He said: "It's a difficult start but I'm looking forward to it because Ronnie
is a big-time player and you always want to play a top player in front of a big
crowd.
"And to be honest, I prefer to play big players because in my first three
years at the Crucible I had some good draws on paper.
"But I've never won a game there in three attempts. I've never played anyone
who has been better than number 12 in the rankings and I lost to all three of
them so an easy looking draw isn't always the best thing.
"I've found it tough to play that venue and maybe it's due to some nerves
because there is so much at stake with so many ranking points and prestige.
"Maybe I put too much pressure on myself but hopefully this time I will be
more relaxed.
"I have to look at playing Ronnie in a positive way and hopefully I can play
a little bit better than before because I usually do well against the top
players."
Fu's record against O'Sullivan suggests he has every right to feel confident
and the 25-year-old claims he has yet to provoke the ire of the sometimes
volatile Englishman.
He said: "He's nice to talk to and I think we get on okay. Every once in
while he comes out with a controversial comment but I enjoy playing him.
"He's never played left-handed against me so that's a good thing because he's
done that with a lot of players through frustration.
"I beat him in January and I've got a pretty good record against him. We've
each won three times against each other but most of them have been in short
matches so this one will be a little bit different.
"He's different from other players because sometimes he gives you chances
even though he's playing well but also he can create chances from nowhere and
make breaks from nothing.
"He's won it before and he knows what it takes to get to the very top. This
tournament has never been one for outsiders and it's always the top four or five
players who win it so it's right that he's the favourite.
"If I beat Ronnie in the first round then I have an easier second-round match
to get to the quarter-finals and that's my goal.
"I also need to get to the semi-finals if I want to get into the top 16
rankings so that's another goal for me to go after."
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