Neil Robertson has told Ronnie O’Sullivan not to enter future tournaments until he’s got his love back for snooker.
The Rocket caused a shock by pulling out of the Masters just two days before he was due to take on Wizard of Wishaw John Higgins in the opening game – with organisers saying that the decision had been taken due to ‘health issues’. O’Sullivan had cut a frustrated figure in the lead up to the event, but his withdrawal paved the way for Robertson – who fought back from 5-1 down to secure a dramatic win against Higgins.
Speaking to SportsBoom after his epic victory over the Scot, snooker ace Robertson said: “I hope he is all right. From what I gather, I think he’d been talking to a couple of players, I think he was saying he wasn’t sure if he was going to play and some of the guys in the championship league were talking to him there. Maybe they know more than I do. He is under so much pressure and people always expect so much of him. I feel as though that the whole game really, he feels the weight of that on his shoulders sometimes, and he’s delivered for so many decades for us as players and fans, me speaking as a fan, what more can he give the game?
“I think it’s important that if he wants to have just a little bit of time off and just rediscover the love for the game and don’t force himself to enter everything, just take his time, maybe don’t enter some events so it doesn’t look like last minute withdrawals. Just say, I’m going to take the next couple of months off.”
Robertson now has a quarter-final to look forward to, and says he goes into it with absolutely no pressure having expected to be watching the tournament from home until the 11th hour call. He added: “The Masters is the first event after the new year, so over Christmas you’re thinking about it. Am I practising enough over the Christmas period? Am I prepared enough? And the anticipation and waiting for it can kind of really build you up. So, the fact that I wasn’t really expecting to play I think was actually really nice. I was still practising just in case. You just never know. But yeah, to get the call on Friday, I was buzzing. I felt as I had nothing to lose.”