Ronnie O’Sullivan has spoken out for the primary time since withdrawing from the 2025 Masters – saying he had “exhausted” himself.
The Rocket was because of defend the title he gained a yr in the past on the Alexandra Palace in London however pulled out of his scheduled first-round match with John Higgins on Friday.
O’Sullivan had been anticipated to problem for a record-extending ninth Masters crown, however the 49 year-old opted to skip the occasion citing medical grounds.
The world quantity three was within the Eurosport studio on Monday night the place he shed some gentle on the explanations behind his choice.
“Yeah, it was a nightmare choice actually to make,” Ronnie O’Sullivan informed Eurosport forward of the match between Mark Selby and Ali Carter.
“In the event you had requested me on Sunday if I used to be able to play, I in all probability would have been okay to play. But it surely’s such a large event.”
“I’ve been on a three-week journey away taking part in, and I simply assume I exhausted myself. There was a variety of strain whereas I used to be away.
“I simply assume that the build-up of all that type of simply acquired a bit an excessive amount of actually. So yeah, I misplaced the plot on Thursday and snapped my cue.
“That’s unplayable, so I simply knew at that second in time the correct choice was to not play.
“It’s such an enormous event that I knew whoever was going to come back in ought to a minimum of have a few days discover.”
After collaborating in varied exhibition and invitation occasions throughout the Christmas and New Yr interval, O’Sullivan participated in Group 3 of Championship League Snooker on Wednesday and Thursday final week.
However the Englishman minimize a disgruntled determine and was visibly upset throughout his round-robin defeat to Robert Milkins, the place he rattled his cue off the aspect of the desk earlier than apologising to his opponent.
O’Sullivan duly pulled out of the occasion earlier than his final league encounter, having misplaced 4 of the 5 video games he had performed up till that time.
A day later, it was introduced that he can be withdrawing from this yr’s version of the Masters as properly.
It represents the sixth event that O’Sullivan has withdrawn from throughout a tough 2024/25 snooker season during which he has failed to succeed in any finals.
The seven-time world champion will moreover must make a change to utilizing a special cue upon his return to the baize.
O’Sullivan snapped his cue in half following his untimely exit on the Championship League final week in Leicester.
“Properly, it was in a bin – one among them wheelie bins,” he mentioned. “However my mate mentioned that you could’t depart that right here, so he type of acquired it out and introduced it with us.”
“However no, I’ve acquired a few different cues that I’ve acquired to begin training with, as a result of clearly there are some tournaments arising.
“I’m going to proceed to play, so I have to get used to the cue now.
“That is an unbelievable event. It’s the highest 16, the very best gamers on the planet, an incredible crowd.
“I’ve gained this event many occasions, I’ve been in like 14 finals. I’d love to come back right here and play once more, and hopefully I’d be fortunate sufficient to win the trophy once more – that’d be nice.”
Neil Robertson was the beneficiary of O’Sullivan’s absence from the 2025 Masters draw, with the Australian coming in as a late substitute to compete on Sunday.
The 2012 and 2022 champion made probably the most of his alternative, reeling off the final 5 frames to pip John Higgins 6-5 in a memorable opening tie this yr.
Shaun Murphy and Ding Junhui are the 2 different gamers by way of to the quarter-finals thus far following respective defeats of Gary Wilson and Mark Williams.
Featured photograph credit score: Eurosport
