00:00Let's get more on this. Rob Walker is a broadcaster and the master of ceremonies for World Snooker.
00:06Rob, welcome to the programme. It has been a thrilling tournament at the Crucible Theatre.
00:11And Wu's going to need to show you some of those nerves of steel now that he's been showing throughout
00:15the tournament.
00:17Yes, hello, Siobhan. He really has captured the crowd, you know, over the last two weeks.
00:22He's been a breath of fresh air. As we say in snooker, he's been potting balls off the lampshades,
00:28which basically means he's going for pots from all over the table.
00:31And more often than not, they're going in. He's had a fantastic run to the final.
00:36He was 3-0 up, but we've just seen Sean Murphy reel off four frames in a row.
00:42And he's just had the first century of the match. He's a brilliant breakbuilder himself.
00:47And Wu will need to be at his best because not only has Sean won the title, he's been in
00:52three other finals.
00:53So it may be that his experience helps him get the better of Wu Yizza on this occasion.
00:59But listen, the kid has been phenomenal. He's beaten some of the all-time greats.
01:05And that semi-final against Mark Allen will long linger in the memory for so many different reasons.
01:11He really has been a brilliant contributor to this year's championship.
01:16And he's not out of it.
01:17Rob, we just heard there, we were talking to our correspondent Lee Jean-Hua before the tournament
01:22and talking about perseverance and mental strength.
01:25He's just 22 years old.
01:27What level of mental strength do you need to win such a high-profile tournament like this?
01:32Immense levels because the Olympic Games is quadrennial and that's 16 days.
01:38Our event is annual and it's 17 days.
01:41And we're on day 16 at the moment.
01:43It's the ultimate mental test of stamina for a snooker player.
01:48And he's been up to the task so far.
01:50What people really like about Wu is that he came over with his dad when he was 16.
01:56His dad gave up his job.
01:57I don't think either of them could speak any English when they came over.
02:01They famously shared a single bed in a one-bedroom flat with no window for three years
02:06because they were determined that he would pursue this dream.
02:10And little by little, with perseverance, with dedication, and with a huge amount of natural talent,
02:16he's got better and better and better.
02:19And all of a sudden, he's in our sport's ultimate match and he's only just turned 22.
02:25It's an amazing story.
02:27It certainly is.
02:28So last year, we had Zhao Xiong Chong become the first-ever Chinese winner of this tournament.
02:33We've now got Wu in the final.
02:34And we also had a record number of Chinese players at this year's World Snooker Championship.
02:38Why are Chinese players doing so well?
02:42Well, one of the answers to that is diligence.
02:45There are so many snooker academies across China.
02:48And when the young lads turn up, they put their phones in a metal box.
02:52They are laser-focused for eight to ten hours a day.
02:55And they pick their mobile phones up on the way out.
02:58And we can't forget Ding Zhongui in all this.
03:02He was China's first ranking event winner when he won the China Open in 2005, just after turning 18.
03:10He hasn't won the world title.
03:12He's been in multiple semis and played a great part in the final in 2016 when he was bidding to
03:17become China's first world champion.
03:19He's come over to Sheffield, where I'm talking to you now.
03:22He's set up an academy.
03:23Many other academies have sprung up.
03:26So Ding's contribution has paved the way for a generation of Chinese players and fans.
03:33And as we saw last year, Zhao Xintong took his opportunity with both hands.
03:37He draped the Chinese flag around his shoulders at the end.
03:40I'm sure that helped him secure some seriously big-money sponsorship deals.
03:45I don't think he's going to have to buy a pint any time soon in Beijing or Shanghai.
03:49But it's a great era for Chinese snooker at the moment.
03:52And underpinning all of it is incredible determination and hard work.
03:57Well, thank you, Rob.
03:58Rob Walkham, broadcaster and master of ceremonies at World Snooker.
04:02And we'll be watching the rest of the tournament with interest.
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