Thachaiya defeated O'Sullivan 10-7 to win the championship. Despite scoring a 147, why didn't he receive the highest single-frame award?

On March 22 Beijing time, the Snooker Yushan World Open concluded. Thachaiya, firing on all cylinders and overturning the match, defeated the world's best player O'Sullivan 10-7, successfully lifting the championship trophy. In this match, Thachaiya also scored a perfect 147, adding icing on the cake. However, despite making this 147, Thachaiya missed out on this award—the highest single-frame prize. What is the reason for this? Let's take a look together!

The championship battle unfolded between the two fast shooters O'Sullivan and Thachaiya. As offensive players, O'Sullivan and Thachaiya share very similar characteristics: whenever there's an opportunity, they choose to attack, and it's the kind of relentless attack. As expected, after the match started, the two delivered an exciting offensive battle. The process was full of twists and turns, with alternating waves of attacks that delighted spectators. Thachaiya erupted in the latter stages, sweeping through with unstoppable momentum, calmly potting balls without mistakes. Ultimately, he executed a lightning-fast four-strike sequence, including three century breaks, to reverse O'Sullivan 10-7 and seize the final championship. This is also Thachaiya's second ranking tournament title in his career!

It can be said that Thachaiya's championship is of full gold content, defeating many top-16 players including the two strongest players, Trump and O'Sullivan. Additionally, although Thachaiya scored a perfect 147 in the final, why didn't he receive the highest single-frame award? The main reason is that O'Sullivan, in his 5-0 sweep against Ryan Day, miraculously created history by scoring the highest single-frame score of 153 points. Therefore, the highest single-frame score was achieved by Rocket!

Thus, Rocket O'Sullivan received the highest single-frame score award. Actually, compared to a perfect 147, many active players can achieve it now. So Rocket's 153 points might be even harder to score, and it's also something rare and unpredictable—it requires having a free ball opportunity right from the start. Therefore, awarding the highest single-frame prize to O'Sullivan is unquestionable. It's just uncertain whether such a situation has occurred historically for the first time?

Text/Sports Fiction