He has often threatened to hang up his cue but now it seems Ronnie O’Sullivan is taking a break from snooker. What now for the sport?
At 36, Ronnie O’Sullivan is, alarmingly, a bit of a veteran on the snooker circuit these days. He may have won his fourth world title at the Crucible earlier this year but at 36, he was the oldest world champ in the sport since Ray Reardon won it in 1978. Ray was 45 though.
Anyway, that bit of information may help partly explain why Ronnie looks to have turned his back on the sport, at least for a while. The Londoner has refused to sign the new contract for players, effectively excluding himself from tournaments next season.
“I have decided not to enter any tournaments for the time being, including this year’s Premier League and forthcoming WPBSA ranking events,” O’Sullivan said about his decision.
“I have not signed the player’s contract as I feel the contract is too onerous and I am in a stage of my career where I don’t wish to make this commitment.”
As we know, some players were very unhappy with the demands placed on them last season by promoter Barry Hearn and this latest move spins the sport into yet another crisis.
With lots of extra events, some players, including Ronnie, have criticised the schedule proposed by Hearn. However, Hearn was not moved, saying last month: “It’s all part of being a professional and they’ve got to get used to it. I couldn’t have less sympathy.”
Add in the retirement of another titan of the sport last month, Stephen Hendry, and this is very bad news for any fans of snooker.
We hope Ronnie can resolve his differences with Hearn and gets back to the table soon. The sport needs him.
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