Ronnie O’Sullivan felt a profession as a footballer may have helped him keep away from the ‘horrible’ emotional rollercoaster of snooker.
The seven-time world champion has been open about his psychological well being struggles lately and withdrew from 9 tournaments over the course of the 2024/25 season for medical causes.
5 of these tournaments have been rating occasions.
However he returned to the baize in time for this 12 months’s World Snooker Championship in pursuit of a record-breaking eighth world title.
O’Sullivan obtained his marketing campaign off to a shiny begin with a 10-4 win over long-time rival Ali Carter within the first spherical.
Nevertheless, talking to Scottish soccer legend Ally McCoist on TNT Sports activities, O’Sullivan conceded it was not as clean a victory as it might have appeared on the floor.
“I actually take pleasure in being on the market taking part in, and I like doing a little bit of TV work with the lads,” O’Sullivan mentioned.
“It simply breaks it up a bit.
“However throughout my final match, I felt a bit edgy. Whereas I used to be taking part in it was tremendous.
“I went dwelling after which I assumed, ‘Oh, the nervousness is kicking off.’
“The subsequent day, I felt loads higher and calmer.
“It is a killer of a sport. A horrible sport. It is evil.”
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O’Sullivan added: “I can not swap off, no.
“It is with you on a regular basis. Even after I’m at dwelling practising.
“If I’ve had a dodgy day, I’m going dwelling and I am sitting there and I am like quiet, moody.
“Form of like in my very own head and the missus is taking a look at me, considering, ‘Come on, enliven.’
“I say snooker’s like chess with balls. It is one in all them sports activities.
“You see chess gamers. There’s loads occurring of their heads.
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“However with footballers, you simply have fun and a joke.
“I envy it. I want I may have been a footballer. They seem like you are having a good time.”
O’Sullivan will look to maintain his bid intact for an unprecedented eighth world title when he takes on China’s Pang Junxu within the second spherical.