Neil Robertson has urged Ronnie O’Sullivan to take some time away from the sport if needed after his late withdrawal from the Masters.
Robertson has proved to be the beneficiary with the Australian replacing the Rocket, who cited medical grounds when he pulled out of the tournament at the eleventh hour. The 49-year-old was looking to land a record-extending ninth title, and had been set to face John Higgins in a blockbuster opening of proceedings at Alexandra Palace on Sunday.
Instead he’s opted out and O’Sullivan has never been shy in discussing how he falls in and out of love with snooker. Robertson admits the Rocket is constantly dealing with huge expectations as the sport’s biggest name and thinks he should take a pause if necessary.
Robertson told SportsBoom: “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?”
“So, 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.”
O’Sullivan claimed his first Masters crown in 1995 at the age of 19 and his success 12 months ago, at the age of 48, meant that he became both the oldest and youngest-ever winner of the second Triple Crown event of the season.
John Higgins told his long-time rival that “health is more important” as he also backed O’Sullivan’s decision to pull out of the Masters. The duo were due to kick off the tournament.
Higgins told the BBC : “Gutted that I wasn’t playing Ronnie. We played here 30 years ago in a final so it would have been good to walk out there again with him. But listen, his health is more important. If he’s going through some tough times just now. I just hope he gets better.”
On Monday Mark Williams will clash with Ding Junhui before former world champion Mark Selby takes on Ali Carter.