‘Disrespectful’ – Ronnie O’Sullivan shut down Snooker question after being forced to explain bizarre break-off
Ronnie O’Sullivan shut down an awkward question after failing to pull off a bizarre break-off. The 49-year-old experienced a bit of a mishap during his break-off in the Home Nations Series back in 2020. O’Sullivan’s break-off on this occasion didn’t quite go to planGetty After the match, presenter Andy Goldstein asked him about it, noting how amateur players are often advised to ‘never hit the blue.’ And sadly, that’s exactly what O’Sullivan found himself doing; his left-hand switch-up didn’t quite go as planned. “Everybody knows my break-off is probably the worst break in the world. That’s why I break off left-handed. In exhibitions, I nail it every time, but on that cloth, I wasn’t sure. “I tried it again in the fifth frame and struck a really solid one, but it ended up tying the black up, which made me think maybe it wasn’t as brilliant as I hoped.” Goldstein pressed him about his left-handed switch-up. “You were getting bored, you wanted a bit of fun, you played left-handed; it was the first time that we’d seen that. “Tonight, with break-offs like that, is there a danger you’re being a tad disrespectful to your opponent?” O’Sullivan swiftly dismissed the question, “No, not at all. “I’d never be disrespectful to any opponent; you know, you’re out there to get yourself in the right frame of mind. The 128, for me, it’s like a marathon; you can’t see the finish line. “You only really get excited in a tournament when you sort of get into the meat of it. Round three you’ve still got 14 miles to go, so you just put your head down and you just get them out of the way. O’Sullivan said he ‘never disrespects’ his opponents “I like the middle-distance races where you can see the finish line and bang. It is hard with the 128 draws because you know I struggle against players that are quite technically slow. “He was taking a bit of time. So if you put that all into the pot, it could have been a recipe for disaster, so I had to try and do something. “It’s important for me that the fans have supported me, so you don’t want to have a stinker out there, so I thought I’d try and do something out there.” O’Sullivan has previously expressed his disdain for lengthy, drawn-out games, saying that they detract from the game of snooker. Being ambidextrous, he is right-handed but can compete at a high level with his left hand, often switching it up when necessary, allowing him to tackle shots that might otherwise require a rest or spider. When he first showcased this left-handed talent at the 1996 World Championship against Alain Robidoux, the Canadian accused him of disrespect and declined to shake hands after their match. O’Sullivan has triumphed at the World Snooker Championship seven timesGetty O’Sullivan has triumphed at the World Snooker Championship seven times, a modern-era record he shares with Stephen Hendry. He has also secured a record eight Masters titles and a record eight UK Championship titles, totaling 23 Triple Crown titles, the most any player has achieved. He holds the record for the most ranking titles at 41 and has been ranked number one multiple times. O’Sullivan holds the highest number of officially recognised maximum breaks in professional competition, boasting 15. He also holds the Guinness World Record for the fastest competitive maximum break, which he achieved in 5 minutes and 8 seconds at the 1997 World Championship.
Ronnie O’Sullivan shut down an awkward question after failing to pull off a bizarre break-off.
The 49-year-old experienced a bit of a mishap during his break-off in the Home Nations Series back in 2020.
After the match, presenter Andy Goldstein asked him about it, noting how amateur players are often advised to ‘never hit the blue.’
And sadly, that’s exactly what O’Sullivan found himself doing; his left-hand switch-up didn’t quite go as planned.
“Everybody knows my break-off is probably the worst break in the world. That’s why I break off left-handed. In exhibitions, I nail it every time, but on that cloth, I wasn’t sure.
“I tried it again in the fifth frame and struck a really solid one, but it ended up tying the black up, which made me think maybe it wasn’t as brilliant as I hoped.”
Goldstein pressed him about his left-handed switch-up.
“You were getting bored, you wanted a bit of fun, you played left-handed; it was the first time that we’d seen that.
“Tonight, with break-offs like that, is there a danger you’re being a tad disrespectful to your opponent?”
O’Sullivan swiftly dismissed the question, “No, not at all.
“I’d never be disrespectful to any opponent; you know, you’re out there to get yourself in the right frame of mind. The 128, for me, it’s like a marathon; you can’t see the finish line.
“You only really get excited in a tournament when you sort of get into the meat of it. Round three you’ve still got 14 miles to go, so you just put your head down and you just get them out of the way.
“I like the middle-distance races where you can see the finish line and bang. It is hard with the 128 draws because you know I struggle against players that are quite technically slow.
“He was taking a bit of time. So if you put that all into the pot, it could have been a recipe for disaster, so I had to try and do something.
“It’s important for me that the fans have supported me, so you don’t want to have a stinker out there, so I thought I’d try and do something out there.”
O’Sullivan has previously expressed his disdain for lengthy, drawn-out games, saying that they detract from the game of snooker.
Being ambidextrous, he is right-handed but can compete at a high level with his left hand, often switching it up when necessary, allowing him to tackle shots that might otherwise require a rest or spider.
When he first showcased this left-handed talent at the 1996 World Championship against Alain Robidoux, the Canadian accused him of disrespect and declined to shake hands after their match.
O’Sullivan has triumphed at the World Snooker Championship seven times, a modern-era record he shares with Stephen Hendry.
He has also secured a record eight Masters titles and a record eight UK Championship titles, totaling 23 Triple Crown titles, the most any player has achieved.
He holds the record for the most ranking titles at 41 and has been ranked number one multiple times.
O’Sullivan holds the highest number of officially recognised maximum breaks in professional competition, boasting 15.
He also holds the Guinness World Record for the fastest competitive maximum break, which he achieved in 5 minutes and 8 seconds at the 1997 World Championship.
