Ronnie O’Sullivan has always had a love-hate relationship with snooker. When he’s in form and playing his best game, there’s no stopping him, and he seems to enjoy the sport. When things aren’t going his way, he loses interest and loses games. During the past couple of years, since winning his last major title in December 2023, we’ve seen the frustrated Ronnie. And, according to several recent reports, much of that frustration has come from the Rocket’s disdain for his cue.
Ronnie O’Sullivan Always Among The Favourites
Despite being 49, an age when most professional players have either retired or spend their time in the Masters league, O’Sullivan still enters events as one of the main favourites. The Rocket is the current third favourite to lift the Saudi Arabia Masters title, behind Neil Robertson and Kyren Wilson. Using a recommended betting site UK bettors can get odds of 10/3 on him winning the tournament.
Kyren Wilson History
Before Ronnie can lift the title, he will need to overcome Kyren Wilson in the quarter-final. The pair last played at the Shanghai Masters when Wilson beat Ronnie 6-3 before going on to win the tournament with a victory over Ali Carter in the final. However, the outcome may be different this time around as Ronnie has found a new secret weapon – a cue he actually likes.
O’Sullivan’s Cue
O’Sullivan has been complaining about his cue for years now. And, in January, it came to a head when he smashed his cue and threw it in the bin.
After the Champions League match, O’Sullivan was asked about his cue-breaking antics and said, “Unrepairable. It’s a bit of memorabilia now. It’ll be getting sold off.
“I literally don’t have a cue. I still haven’t found one that I’m comfortable with. Still just trying out different ones. Trying to find one that I like. I’ve probably changed my cue maybe four, five times. On two or three occasions, I found one straightaway.
“I’m not bothered about winning and losing. I never have been. On the other two occasions, it has taken me sometimes a year to find one. I do regret it really. Because it was my cue. It’s hard to find another one.”
However, according to recent reports, he may have found a new one. World number 71, Sunny Akani, made the new cue for Ronnie, who said of his fellow professional: “I’ve used three or four of his cues, and they’re all great. So I’m like: ‘fantastic, I might smash this one and just get another one!’
“It is like being an engineer, but just with wood. I wouldn’t have a clue. Sunny is a very intelligent guy, and he makes unbelievable cues. It is just unbelievable.”
A player’s cue is obviously important to their game, potentially even affecting their mentality. Some players, seemingly including Ronnie in the past few years, can struggle with bad performances if they don’t find one they like.
Ronnie’s Performance Levels
And, his new cue certainly seems to be helping, with commentators claiming he has got his swagger back, and Ronnie himself saying he was starting to take the game for granted but is enjoying himself again.
Having missed the Welsh Open, the Masters, and the World Open events earlier this year, taking a break to support his own mental health, O’Sullivan is performing well at the Saudi event.
O’Sullivan beat fellow Englishman Joe O’Connor 5-0 in his first match at the tournament, setting up an intriguing tie with Chang Bingyu. Chang raced into a 4-1 lead in the best of 11 match.
With progression in the tournament teetering on the brink, O’Sullivan won four frames on the bounce and made a 125 clearance in the deciding frame to grab an unlikely victory. In doing so, he set up another tantalising tie, this time with Kyren Wilson.
World number 2 Wilson dumped O’Sullivan out of the Shanghai Masters at the end of last year, and he progressed after beating Si Jiahui 6-3 in the previous round.
The Saudi Arabia Masters
The Saudi Arabia Masters has come under fire this year. It is popular with some players due to its £500,000 top prize. The tournament, which is being called the fourth major, has joined the UK Championship, Masters, and World Championship maximum break prize pot, as well.
If any player scores two maximum breaks across the four majors, they pick up a £147,000 bonus. Ronnie himself has something of a history with the maximum break prize.
In the 2016 Welsh Open, Ronnie opted to pot a pink after the penultimate red, instead of the black, ending with a 146 break and claiming that the £10,000 prize wasn’t worth the maximum break. Before 2009, a player hitting a maximum was awarded £147,000 for the achievement, as well as their share of the maximum break prize pot.
However, the World Snooker Tour pointed to the increased number of maximum breaks being made as justification for dropping the prize.
Not all players appreciate the Saudi Arabia Masters. Divisive Shaun Murphy has said that the event is still some way off the Triple Crown events, even though its prize money equals that of the World Championship – he said: “At the moment, for me, the other three would still be ahead of this one, despite the prize money. You can’t buy legacy.”
The tournament has also come under fire from fans – those watching from home, at least. The early rounds of this tournament have been played to crowds of a handful of people. In some cases, the seats have been completely empty.
This has become less of a problem as the tournament has progressed, with the best players in the world joining from round 5. One evening’s play was also completely suspended when the live scoring system went down. Matches were played the next day, instead, after the system was repaired.
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