‘Rocket’s not all of snooker’
WORLD Snooker chairman Barry Hearn insists the sport can survive even without Ronnie O’Sullivan.
Five-time world champion O’Sullivan has issued the starkest threat yet that he may miss this year’s World Championship at the Crucible.
World No.2 O’Sullivan has strongly hinted that unless unspecified “terms and conditions” are right he could be in Australia filming a cuesports travel TV programme.
O’Sullivan had been in blistering form recently – but did suffer a crushing 6-1 defeat at the Masters to Mark Allen.
And it is hard to think of another sport where the profile and box office appeal rely so heavily on a single player.
But Hearn doubts O’Sullivan will carry through on his threat – and reckons even if he does it will be his own loss.
He said: “It’s his choice, not mine. I believe we’ll see him there. If we don’t I think he’s making a bad choice.
“My dream would be Ronnie lasts for ever. My other dream is I produce six more Ronnie O’Sullivans to replace him when he goes.
“We had exactly the same thing in the world of darts – Phil Taylor has retired and everyone says, ‘He’s the greatest player ever, what are we going to do?’
“He retires, somebody else in Rob Cross wins and the game hits bigger figures than it’s hit before and snooker will be the same.”
This year’s China Open in April will feature the biggest first prize in history outside the World Championship.