Ronnie O’Sullivan says he made the “nightmare” determination to withdraw from the Masters on medical grounds after he “misplaced the plot” final Thursday.
The defending champion had been planning to go after a record-extending ninth title and was scheduled to face John Higgins on Sunday in a blockbuster opening to the match at Alexandra Palace.
Nonetheless, the 49-year-old elected to not play within the invitational occasion for the highest 16 ranked gamers after a mixture of fatigue and strain spilled out throughout a 3-2 Championship League defeat by Robert Milkins in Leicester.
‘The Rocket’, who appeared clearly pissed off, broke his cue and threw it in a bin and pulled out of his ultimate group sport later that day.
On Friday, it was introduced he would additionally miss the Masters and get replaced by Neil Robertson within the line-up.
“It was a nightmare determination actually to make,” O’Sullivan advised Eurosport.
“When you had requested me on Sunday if I used to be able to play, I might most likely have been OK. It’s such an enormous match.”
O’Sullivan, together with a number of of his fellow elite gamers, featured in profitable exhibition occasions within the Far East in latest weeks.
These adopted on from his look on the Riyadh Season Snooker Championship in Saudi Arabia in late December.
“I’ve clearly been on this three-week journey, away taking part in, and I feel I simply exhausted myself,” O’Sullivan stated.
“[There was] a number of strain whereas I used to be away and the build-up of all that type of received an excessive amount of. I misplaced the plot on Thursday and snapped my cue in order that’s unplayable, so I simply knew at that second in time, the best determination was to not play.
“It is such an enormous match I felt whoever was going to come back in ought to a minimum of have a few days’ discover.”
O’Sullivan has received 41 rating occasions and 7 world titles throughout a storied profession since turning skilled in 1992 and claimed his first Masters crown in 1995 on the age of 19.
His success 12 months in the past on the age of 48 implies that he holds information for being the oldest and youngest ever winner of the Triple Crown occasion.
He additionally determined to miss the Masters in 2020.
O’Sullivan, who confirmed that he’s now “all proper”, might want to get used to a unique cue as he prepares to return to the game, having wrecked the final one.
“It was within the bin, one in every of them wheelie bins, however my mate stated we will not go away that right here, so he received it out and introduced it with us,” O’Sullivan stated.
“I’ve received a few different cues that I can begin practising with as a result of there’s some tournaments arising. I will proceed to play so I must get used to the cue now.”
