Ronnie O’Sullivan’s performance throughout the 2012 Snooker World Championship was little short of perfect, as he lost just 41 frames on his route to victory.

Four frames to Peter Ebdon in the first round, six to Mark Williams in round two, ten to Neil Robertson in the pair’s cagey quarter-final – a match Ronnie said was among his favourites – ten more to semi-final opponent Matthew Stevens, and 11 for finalist Ali Carter stood against O’Sullivan’s total of 71 frames to win the 2012 title.

2012 could prove to be a punishing year for snooker fans, as the World Championship in Sheffield might be the last outing for not just one of the greatest-ever players, but two.

Last week, Stephen Hendry announced his retirement after failing to reach the final of the tournament, despite an impressive performance throughout this year’s contest.

With Stephen Maguire drawn against Allister Carter, and Ronnie O’Sullivan facing Matthew Stevens, the fixture list for the remainder of the tournament is an all-star affair.

But it seems the final four are finding it hard to stick to their usual styles of play, particularly when compared with their preceding matches.

Stephen Hendry’s impressive performance at the Crucible in Sheffield came to an end this week as he crashed out of the snooker World Championship for what is likely to be the final time.

After losing to Stephen Maguire by a crushing margin of 13 frames to 2, the seven-time world champion revealed he will not play again in tournament-level snooker as he moves into an ambassador role to promote the sport worldwide.