O'Donnell is Pressel's black monster. In three previous encounters, the “Belgian Bullet” also lost each time. And this season (in December) it actually happened in the sixteenth final of the Scottish Open (4-2).
Once again Bressel had a tough time against O'Donnell. The world champion had a few chances to win, but did not convert them in the crucial moments. The Englishman took advantage of the opportunities he had.
“I have no idea why, but he always plays perfectly against me,” Pressel said. “This was one of the best matches I played this week, but I lost it. That too is snooker. Martin was very good.
“I've had some great wins over Pressel before, but to do it here in the final stages of the tournament means something even more,” O'Donnell said. “Last season I wasn't a professional anymore. It wasn't easy to get a ticket back for another round, but I came back: older and wiser. I wasn't trying to make a big deal out of everything anymore. Sometimes I got into it too much. I still played as if “My life depends on it, but I've learned to digest defeats better and put them behind me. This season I'm also trying to play a little faster and less defensive and that seems to be paying off.”
So there will be no semi-final for Bresil. For example, he cannot match his best result at the Welsh Open. In 2015, when the tournament was still being held in Cardiff, later tournament winner John Higgins kept him out of the final.
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