'Puts me in a bad place' – Ronnie O'Sullivan joins Mark Selby in revealing mental health battle at snooker tournaments
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ByEurosport
Updated 23/02/2022 at 11:02 GMT
Ronnie O'Sullivan admits he does not like discussing snooker after playing a match because "talking about it puts me in a bad place". O'Sullivan battled past Zhang Anda and problems with lighting inside the Marshall Arena to reach the European Masters last 32 with a 5-4 win. O'Sullivan's comments come after fellow Englishman Mark Selby revealed he was consulting a doctor to help with depression.
O'Sullivan with a brilliant 128 break against Zhang
Ronnie O'Sullivan has joined world champion Mark Selby by admitting the mental health problems snooker poses leads to a debilitating state of depression.
The record 38-time ranking event winner revealed he has been battling mental health issues during the European Masters in Milton Keynes a day after Selby confirmed he was consulting a doctor to help him overcome the turmoil of "more bad days than good."
While O'Sullivan battled past Zhang Anda 5-4 and lighting problems to reach the last 32 on Tuesday at the Marshall Arena, Selby suffered a shock 5-3 defeat to Welsh Open holder Jordan Brown.
O'Sullivan has always discussed openly his problems with depression, but admits the challenges do not get any easier in his 30th year at the summit of the sport.
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A light distracts O'Sullivan during his win over Zhang
“I find it hard to talk about my games, I have snooker depression for two or three hours after my matches," O'Sullivan told reporters.
Talking about it puts me in a bad place. I call it snooker depression because it is depression due to snooker. I don’t just wake up and say ‘I’m depressed’ - you aren’t when you are doing something you enjoy.
“You might afterwards, but you can get it doing this job if it bothers you and you are not enjoying it. And that happens to me, snooker plays on the mind. If you love your job, any job, then you won’t suffer with it – unless you are totally detached from your feelings.
"Let’s call it sports depression, across the board.
“It’s up to you to find ways to deal with it, and I am going to smash the gym, feel better, eat nice food, get into my spa and sauna and watch it disappear.”
O'Sullivan continues his quest for a first European Masters title when he faces Wu Yize on Wednesday afternoon (2:30pm GMT live on Eurosport).
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