Ronnie O’Sullivan has issued a warning that he will quit playing snooker if his ability to participate in China is restricted.
The Far East is hosting more and more exhibition events, but they often clash with World Snooker Tour events. UK-based players like O’Sullivan are obligated to participate in WST tournaments and could face consequences if they choose to play overseas instead. O’Sullivan believes that snooker is at a critical juncture. He expressed his views in an interview with the BBC, where he stated that if he is prevented from playing in China, he would consider playing Chinese 8-Ball instead. Although he still wants to play snooker, O’Sullivan feels that there are not enough opportunities in the UK to justify his effort and that he would rather be valued and respected elsewhere.
He emphasized that he does not want to be forced into a situation where playing snooker is impossible and expressed his opposition to the mediocrity he perceives in the sport. O’Sullivan believes that being a top-16 snooker player is not particularly challenging and claims that he could get away with playing once a week for a few hours each day. He finds it difficult to relate to players who accept being in the top 50 as satisfactory and avoids mingling with snooker people at venues due to his distaste for this mentality. O’Sullivan believes there is a lack of high-quality matches and feels that many players are unknown and do not play the game correctly.
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