Ronnie O’Sullivan says Robert Milkins reminds him of Tony Drago - ‘He’s got a really good snooker brain’

Ronnie O’Sullivan says Robert Milkins reminds him of flamboyant snooker player Tony Drago, after the world No. 27 reached the Welsh Open final. Milkins beat Tian Pengfei 6-2 in a match that featured a contrast of styles, and the result means the player nicknamed The Milkman can win the bonus of £150,000, as well as the Welsh Open title, should he be victorious on Sunday.

Ad He won the final three frames after a cagey start to the match and a brilliant deep screw shot on two reds that saw the first fly into the right centre in the penultimate frame underlined Milkins’ growing confidence. Welsh Open'Playing the final is hard enough!' — Milkins suggests BetVictor bonus will make him more nervousAN HOUR AGO “If I was sitting in my chair, I wouldn’t think he got lucky there,” O’Sullivan said in the Eurosport studio when analysing the shot. “He’s got a really good snooker brain.

He reminds me of Tony Drago. Players like him and Drago see shots like that. “He played good, solid stuff, did enough to win.

He’s got a lot of confidence, so he will fancy the job [in the final].” Milkins turned professional in 1995 but has only played one previous ranking final which came at last year’s Gibraltar Open, where he beat Kyren Wilson 4-2. This month, the 46-year-old has been in great form, having reached the semi-finals of the German Masters two weeks ago. Neal Foulds says Milkins is just a “normal guy that plays snooker, who has a gift” and thinks his triumph in Gibraltar boosted his career.

“It certainly helped him,” said Foulds. “Gibraltar was not the biggest event, but it was a ranking event, and in that final he wasn’t frightened to get over the line. Welsh Open 2023 – Latest scores, results, schedule, order of play Players