Mark Davis
Mark Davis

Mark Davis beats Ronnie O'Sullivan 6-1 in the semi-finals of the English Open


Mark Davis pulled off one of the biggest wins of his career when thrashing Ronnie O'Sullivan 6-1 to book his place in the final of English Open.

Davis has been in terrific form all week and announced himself as a genuine title contender in Crawley when breezing past Ryan Day in the quarter-finals on Friday.

Nevertheless, not many would have given him a chance against a seemingly unstoppable O'Sullivan who made a 147 maximum break on Wednesday and came through a tough match against Luo Honghao in the last eight.

The 46-year-old Davis, who is still seeking a first ranking-title success, spoke before the match of his respect for O'Sullivan but also of his previous success against the five-time world champion and he certainly showed no signs of stage fright when the players entered the arena.

Davis dominated the opening frame and though a break of 56 allowed O'Sullivan to level the scores, it was to be his last success of the night.

A classy break of 102 put Davis back in front at 2-1 and moments later he was heading to the mid-session interval with a two-frame advantage thanks to a well-taken run of 93.

O'Sullivan didn't register a point in frame five as Davis continued to score at will, a break of 84 extending his lead even further before another 50+ contribution, this time of 65, put him on the brink of victory at 5-1.

O'Sullivan tried to rally briefly when Davis broke down on 52 in frame seven but it was to prove in vain as the latter wrapped up proceedings and a 6-1 victory, surely one of the finest of his career.

Davis will meet Stuart Bingham in Sunday's final after he defeated Stephen Maguire in the first semi-final.


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