'Scared' Ronnie O’Sullivan broke down in tears during World Snooker Championship match
An emotional Ronnie O'Sullivan broke down and failed to hold back the tears at the World Snooker Championship.
Ronnie O’Sullivan begins his World Snooker Championship campaign on Wednesday against Jackson Page, aiming to seal a record eighth Crucible title. The Rocket will be hoping to feel the reverse emotions to his last final win in 2022, when he defeated Judd Trump 18-13 but struggled to battle nerves before heading out to the big stage.
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O’Sullivan has rarely hidden his emotions and recently opened up about hiring a psychologist who will work with him in Sheffield. But never were his mental struggles so clear for all to see during his Amazon documentary last year.
Two years ago, O’Sullivan had raced into a 12-5 lead over Trump but lost form after the interval and lost five of the next six frames to give his opponent the chance to overturn the lead and complete what would have been a historic comeback.
Between sessions, the 48-year-old returned to his dressing room with psychologist Steve Peters and broke down in tears. O’Sullivan admitted to feeling “scared” and that he was questioning his own ability while dealing with nerves on the biggest stage in snooker.
"I hate this bit,” an emotional O’Sullivan admitted. “I've gone from heavy leg, jelly leg to feeling tired. It's a horrible feeling. I'm questioning my technique. I now think 'how am I going to play'. F**k that. I feel ill. I feel ill with pressure.
"It's f***ing horrible. I'm just tight, I hate it mate I hate it. I feel f***ed, energy's drained. I feel like I've got stage fright, it's horrible. I hate it I feel like I want to cry. Hell. I don't even feel like I want to face this, I can't, I feel so tight. On every shot I feel like I'm going to miss this, I'm f***ing gone. My eyes are blurry. Honestly I f***ing hate this, I feel like I don't want to face it. I'm scared mate, I'm scared."
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However, O’Sullivan was able to keep his nerve and rallied to hold a lead and win eight more frames to claim a seventh world title. After going level with Stephen Hendry, the Rocket was in tears once again as he embraced Trump moments after victory was confirmed and confetti fell from the Crucible rafters.
“I was so emotional. To finally get over the line, I just thought it would never happen,” O’Sullivan later explained to Eurosport. “I gave him a big hug and I was just sobbing in his arms. And he said such lovely words.
“What he said to me blew me away to be honest. It just blew me away. I love Judd. I love him, he’s a great lad, and I didn’t realise what he thought of me until then.”
