Ronnie O’Sullivan says he ‘lost the plot’ before pulling out of Masters defence
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Ronnie O’Sullivan has called his withdrawal from this year’s Masters event “a nightmare decision”, adding that he “lost the plot” and broke his cue in half before dropping out of last week’s Championship League. Speaking in his role as a pundit on Eurosport, O’Sullivan said: “It was a nightmare decision, really, to make. If you’d asked me Sunday if I was ready to play, I probably would have been OK to play, but it’s such a massive tournament.”.
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O’Sullivan withdrew from his Masters title defence on Friday on medical grounds, after struggling at Thursday’s Championship League event in Leicester. The current world No 3 lost three of his first four matches before pulling out of his final group game, amid reports he had thrown his cue in the bin.
“I’ve been on this three-week trip away playing, and I think I just exhausted myself,” the eight-times Masters champion added. “A lot of pressure, the buildup of all that got a bit too much. I lost the plot on Thursday, snapped my cue so that’s unplayable.”.
Along with a number of other elite players, O’Sullivan has recently featured in lucrative exhibition events in the Far East. He also appeared at the Riyadh Season Snooker Championship in Saudi Arabia last month, losing to Mark Allen in the semi-finals.
