Red carpets are not as pleasant for Ronnie O’Sullivan as red balls are.
“That’s me out,” the seven-time world snooker champion adds, “if I had looked at the contract and it said you have to do a premiere.” It’s not really my style. It is not easy for me to receive kindness from others.
Ronnie O’Sullivan, 47, a seven-time world champion, has threatened to give up the game if he is not allowed to compete in China in non-tournament competitions.
Throughout his career, O’Sullivan—who is considered as one of the best players of all time and has won 39 ranking events—has frequently disagreed with the World Snooker Tour, the organization that oversees the sport.
This year, he has pulled out of multiple competitions, including the British Open and European Masters. He also said that he would not be participating in the Bolton Champions of Champions tournament this month.
If the Englishman skips matches to compete in competitions in China, he could face punishment from the World Snooker Tour.
At this point, O’Sullivan told the BBC, “I have no choice.” “I won’t play again if I can’t go out and do what I need to do, which is play a lot in China.
“We’ve reached a bit of a crossroads. For me, there isn’t enough in the UK to make the effort worthwhile. I play for big audiences, wonderful venues, and great prize money whenever I travel to China. Additionally
I most likely won’t play if it gets to the point where I can’t do that or am not permitted to do that. I still want to play snooker, so I’ll probably go play Chinese 8 ball (pool). I still desire to hold a cue.”
According to O’Sullivan, he did not feel valued in the snooker world.
“I don’t think any of the best players do,” O’Sullivan remarked. “If I could play snooker for the next five, six, seven, or eight years, that would be fantastic.
“But I won’t accept doing what the other 130 guys do, which is play tournament after tournament, if I’m going to be put in a position where that’s not feasible.
