RONNIE O’Sullivan has threatened to retire following his final frame defeat to Judd Trump in the last 16 of the Williamhill.com UK Championship.
The 36-year-old has not won a ranking event for two years and a combination of poor form and a lack of participation in PTC and overseas events during 2011 have caused his place in the elite top 16 to come under threat.
O’Sullivan, who turned professional in 1992, has made numerous threats to quit over the years, including last March after he was knocked out of the China Open. However, on this occasion, ‘The Rocket’ says he is seeking a more balanced life and wishes to pursue interests away from snooker. He said: “I don’t want to take the shine off Judd but I seriously can’t see me having much longer playing – I think there’s more to life, or there is for me.”
The three-time world champion, who has won 22 ranking titles, along with seven Premier Leagues in the last eight seasons, has a long history of psychological problems and has sought the help of former England cricket captain turned psychotherapist Mike Brearley, and, more recently, renowned psychiatrist Dr Steve Peters, who works with Team Sky’s cyclists. O’Sullivan said: “He’ll kill me for saying this and opening up like this – I will talk to him and I think for my own peace of mind, my own life, there is life beyond snooker.”
O’Sullivan admitted he had found it hard being single, but thought the demands of professional snooker may make being in a relationship more difficult. He said: “I still want to work and I’m sure I’ll find stuff to do but I want to share my life with someone.
“I don’t want to be living on my own, I don’t want to travel around the world on my own feeling anxious, carrying these emotions. To be the real Ronnie, I need to get away from what’s causing the problem.”
The match itself lived up to expectations with nine breaks of more than 50 in the 11 frames played.
In the deciding frame, which BBC Two’s coverage left just minutes before its conclusion, Trump made an attacking break of 51, but O’Sullivan missed out on the chance to force a respotted black when he suffered a kick on the penultimate red and missed a thin cut on the following black.
However, the 22-year-old from Bristol, who will now face Stephen Maguire in the quarter-finals, admitted he was far from happy with his performance and believes he needs to improve if he is to win snooker’s second-biggest ranking title. He said: “I think I got outplayed, my safety wasn’t great and I let him in first in over half of the frames.
“I got a little bit lucky to still be in the match but it’s always nice to be in the last stages.”