Former world champion Neil Robertson has flown up the snooker rankings since altering his title
Neil Robertson has had a 12 months to recollect on and off the desk (Picture: Getty)
Neil Robertson has loved a 12 months to recollect since receiving an enormous honour that allowed him to legally change his title. At first of 2025, the Thunder from Down Beneath obtained the Order of Australia award for providers to snooker, that means he can use the initials OAM.
The award was created by Queen Elizabeth II in 1975 after the advice of then-Australian Prime Minister Gough Whitlam. It’s the highest civilian honour bestowed by the Australian authorities. Though he does not use the initials at tournaments, they’re now hooked up to his title on his social media profiles. Reacting to the information on social media, Robertson wrote: “Wow, what an honour. The proudest second of my profession! A child rising up in Australia, I may by no means think about one thing like this.”
It has been a whirlwind couple of years for Robertson, who was at all-time low lower than two years in the past after failing to qualify for the 2024 World Championship. Nonetheless, after making important adjustments behind the scenes, together with making a help crew, he has flown again up the world rankings.
Shortly after receiving his award, he received the World Grand Prix in Hong Kong, thrashing Stuart Bingham 10-0 within the ultimate. Again within the prime 16, he secured direct entry into the World Championship, though he misplaced within the first spherical to Chris Wakelin.
He then made a flying begin to the 2025/26 season by profitable the profitable Saudi Arabia Masters by beating Ronnie O’Sullivan 10-9 in an exhilarating ultimate. The £500,000 prime prize – the identical because the World Championship – gave his world rating one other main increase.
Since then, he has reached the semi-final of the UK Championship, shedding to Judd Trump, earlier than a gut-wrenching 6-5 defeat to Kyren Wilson within the quarter-final of the Masters. Talking after that defeat, the 26-time rating occasion winner stated: “It was an exquisite match. To return again the best way I did (after being 3-0 and 4-1 down), I appeared for all the cash as if I’d be the winner.
Robertson after profitable the Saudi Arabia Masters (Picture: Getty)
“However for a few unfortunate moments, I’d have been and that’s advantageous as a result of I did not make any large errors. You replicate and may know that you’re on the suitable path.
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“I simply must hold placing myself in that place and when the luck does go my means I’ll be in place to take benefit. It’s all the time advantageous margins, particularly at this stage of snooker.”
Robertson is at present third on this planet rankings and tops the one-year rating record, thanks largely to his win in Saudi. This week, he has been in motion on the German Masters in Berlin, one of many few tournaments the 2010 world champion has did not win in his illustrious profession.
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