Stephen Maguire took on Ronnie O’Sullivan earlier this month and, even for the battle hardened Scot, it was a bruising experience.
The pair met in the last 32 of the Xi’an Grand Prix and it was a one-sided affair with the Rocket firing on all cylinders.
The seven-time world champion won 5-0 with breaks of 134, 70, 63 and 85 along the way to a whitewash win.
Maguire has been in decent form this season, winning the Championship League at the start of the campaign, but he was left feeling inferior after his meeting with the Rocket.
The 44-year-old feels he has run into a lot of tough competition in recent times, but none more so than the Englishman.
‘I’ve had some stinking draws,’ Maguire told Metro. ‘I drew Ronnie in the last 32. [Zhao] Xintong in the last 32 [of the Wuhan Open]. The world champion and a seven-time world champion.
‘Aaron Hill who’s been on form was far too good for me [at the English Open]. The boys who are beating me are playing well.
‘Ronnie was unbelievable against me. Ronnie was just incredible. He made me realise how far away I am. So I’ve been practicing, just trying to get something.’
Maguire has not beaten O’Sullivan since 2012 and feels he must have done something to wind up the Rocket in the past.
‘He does it to me every time,’ said Maguire. ‘I don’t know what I’ve done to p**s him off years and years ago because he is always top notch when I go on the table with him, he’s always on it. He’s good to watch.’
Maguire has been as high as number two in the world and is currently working to reclaim a spot in the top 16 from his current position of 25.
On what is stopping him regaining the form of old, which saw him huge tournaments like the UK Championship and Tour Championship, he said: ‘It’s tough, man. I don’t know.’
Could it be confidence? ‘Maybe. If I knew what it was I’d fix it. It’s tough out there. Everybody’s good. It’s a tough game.
‘There’s a lot of big tournaments coming up so every match is massive. Especially where I’m ranked, I’m nowhere right now, so I’m trying to get back up there.’
As mentioned, Maguire did land the Championship League title in July, but he does not sound overly proud of the achievement.
‘Ach, somebody had to win the league and that’s forgotten about,’ he said. ‘But it’s given me a good wee platform to get into the Grand Prix and that series [Players Championship and Tour Championship].’
Maguire is into the last 32 of the Northern Ireland Open where he faces Si Jiahui after beating Luca Brecel 4-1 on Tuesday morning.
He beat the Belgian Bullet in a 10am start and made sure to arrive in Belfast late on Monday to avoid the temptations of a very fun city.
‘It’s a great venue. I think everyone enjoys coming over here,’ he said. ‘I made an effort not to come over early. I arrived last night, 11pm last flight in, because I knew I’d get roped in.
‘There’s no point me coming over in the afternoon because I’m not going to sit in the hotel room all day. I made an effort to be a wee bit fresh.’
