When Neil Robertson won the World Snooker Championship in 2010, it felt like the first of many world titles that would come the Australian’s way. He had produced some memorable performances en route to the final against Graeme Dott, which he won 18-13 to become the first overseas player since Cliff Thorburn triumphed in 1980 to win the sport’s biggest prize. Such was his form, it was impossible to think that there wouldn’t be more world titles to come.
However, 11 years later, that 2010 success is still the only World Championship triumph that Robertson has to his name. It is one of snooker’s great mysteries that a player as supremely talented in all areas of the game has failed to add to his tally of Crucible victories, but for whatever reason it just hasn’t happened for the Australian in the decade since.
The first thing to remember is that the World Snooker Championship is an incredibly difficult tournament to win. Competing with the very best players in the world in long multi-session matches over 17 days is no easy task, but it is surprising that Robertson has only made the semi-finals once since he won the title in 2010 – that was in 2014 when Mark Selby ended his hopes before going on to win his first world title.
The form of players like Selby, Ronnie O’Sullivan and John Higgins in that time have made it difficult for Robertson. A criticism often levelled at Robertson is that he doesn’t have the right mentality when matches go scrappy, and this can let his opponents get on top of him at times. He has lost some matches you would certainly expect him to win, and despite often showing form in the early rounds at the Crucible, each year his World Championship campaign seems to hit a stumbling block.
This year, Robertson went into the sport’s showpiece as the in-form player, having obliterated the field to win the Tour Championship last month. He beat Jack Lisowski, Mark Selby and Ronnie O’Sullivan comfortably to win that competition, and it was no surprise to see his name right up there in the snooker world championship 2021 odds.
Robertson’s 10-3 first-round win over Liang Wenbo proved that he is still in a rich vein of form, though it is very hard to know whether the Australian can convert this purple patch into a serious tilt at the world title. There have been so many times in the past when snooker fans and pundits have tipped Robertson to win it based on his form in the early rounds, and then been made to look foolish when he bows out meekly in the quarter-finals.
This year, however, there is a real sense that things could be different. Robertson has picked and chosen his events since he won the UK Championship back in December, and he seems fresh and ready for the mental marathon that is the World Championship. He has also said repeatedly in interviews that his aim this year is to play matches on his terms, and not get bogged down in the kind of scrappy frames that don’t suit his free-flowing style.
If Robertson can continue to build his momentum, then you can bet that he’ll have plenty to say when push comes to shove at the business end of the tournament.