May 4th 2024.
Dave Gilbert had a frustrating experience on Friday night as he suffered a shocking defeat. The Crucible, where the match took place, was described as a bonkers place to play by Gilbert himself. Despite a good performance on Thursday, he had a bad day on Friday, which cost him the match against Kyren Wilson.
The two players were neck and neck in the first two sessions, with a score of 4-4 and 8-8, but Wilson pulled ahead on Friday night. Gilbert, who had previously lost a close semi-final match to John Higgins in 2019, felt that this defeat was a completely different experience. Both matches were played at the eccentric South Yorkshire venue, which Gilbert believes makes it one of the toughest and most enjoyable places to play.
Reflecting on his previous semi-final loss and this one, Gilbert said, "Last time, I came so close. It's different this time, I didn't even get the chance to win after reaching 16 frames. That kick on the red will haunt me forever, probably. This year, I believed I could win it more than last time, absolutely. I had complete faith in myself."
Kyren Wilson has now secured his spot in the World Championship final, leaving Gilbert disappointed. "I'm pretty disappointed because I thought I had a good chance. My game was there, I just had a bad session. It's tough out there, man. It looks so easy when you watch it. How did he miss that? How did he do that?"
Reflecting on what went wrong on Friday, Gilbert explained, "I'm very particular about my alignment and I knew something wasn't right. When I feel like that, I can't hit the ball properly and I start flicking it with a bit of side. I was just guessing." He acknowledged that every player has a tough time at some point during the tournament, and unfortunately, he couldn't rectify his issues on the day.
Despite the disappointment, Gilbert is trying to remain positive and focus on the good run he had in the tournament. "It's been a great run and it's a disappointing way to go out because I really believed I could win that game. I had more than enough chances to do that, but good luck to Kyren." He also thanked his friend Andy Lee and the fans who were in the crowd, saying, "The reception we got when we walked in was very special and I'll always remember it."
In the end, Gilbert is looking forward to some much-needed downtime and a few laughs with his friend. "I'll be buying the ale tonight and we'll just laugh about it, I guess. I was battling a lot of elements throughout the match. At 8-8, I felt like I was the stronger player, but things just weren't going my way. Kyren played confidently and deserved to win."
As for the future, Gilbert is determined to stay fit and continue improving his game. He also had some words of wisdom for those who may have been critical of his performance, "It's just a game of snooker, there's no need to feel too bad about it. I'll keep up my fitness and come back stronger." He also thanked his mate Andy Lee again, jokingly saying, "I'll be buying the ale tonight and we'll just laugh about it, I guess."
In a final note, Gilbert added, "I was always battling a lot of elements. 8-8 I felt I was the stronger player, kept getting the back end of things. I had a bit of a shocker last night. Kyren looks confident and deserved to win the match."
The article ends by mentioning Ronnie O'Sullivan's recent comments about the referees and Jak Jones' response to social media abuse.
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