Ronnie O’Sullivan issued a brutally honest assessment of his performance at the Saudi Arabia Masters, as the seven-time snooker world champion admitted he could retire if his current level doesn’t improve.
The 48-year-old made it through to the quarter-finals of the tournament in Riyadh with a 6-5 victory over Zhang Anda in a thrilling contest.
O’Sullivan was forced to fight back from the brink after trailing 3-0 at one point and then trailed 5-4, giving Zhang, 32, the chance to seal victory. But he refused to give up, taking the match to a deciding frame before rounding off the comeback win.
Despite breezing past Lei Peifan 5-1 in the previous round, The Rocket was downbeat about his display and vented his frustration at the mistakes he made at the table.
“I played better than I have been playing but still so many mistakes, so many unforced errors and just not good enough, but I have to accept that’s what it is,” O’Sullivan told Eurosport.
“I’ve been on a steady decline probably for five years, it’s just getting a little bit worse and worse, but you just try and hang on for as long as you can, it happens to everybody.
“That’s the frustrating thing. Normally, I feel like I put enough pressure on my opponents to force them to make mistakes. I’ve spent most of my career just feeling pretty much in control. I didn’t realise how much I was in control of matches until I’ve experienced not being in control of matches.”
O’Sullivan’s chances of claiming the lucrative £500,000 prize money remain very much in his own hands after winning his 146th quarter-final in a ranked event.
He has already tasted victory in the Arabian Gulf once this year already, claiming the title at the World Masters of Snooker tournament in Riyadh. The Saudi Masters offers a whole new challenge, however, as the biggest event organised outside of the three Majors.
But O’Sullivan made a bleak prediction about his chances of success after admitting he fears he is past his peak, dropping a hint that he could be set to retire from the sport in the “next two or three years”.
“I just want to try and enjoy it. I ain’t got long left. I’ll be lucky if I’m in the top 16 within the next two or three years, the way I’m playing,” O’Sullivan added.
“It happens to everyone, every sportsman. You have an up and then you stay there for a while and then you have a gradual down. I just have to accept it.”
In beating one Chinese player, O’Sullivan now faces another in Si Jiahui, who overcame his compatriot Pang Junxu on Wednesday to set up a mouthwatering quarter-final clash.
