Exclusive:
Stephen Hendry has given his verdict on Ronnie O’Sullivan’s chances of enjoying more Triple Crown glory as The Rocket prepares to begin his defence of the UK Championship
Stephen Hendry insists it would be “stupid” to write off Ronnie O’Sullivan at the UK Championship.
By his own admission, The Rocket’s powers are on the wane and he has skipped several tournaments already this season, citing medical issues. However, it’s still less than year since O’Sullivan won eighth titles at the both the UK Championship and Masters, taking his overall Triple Crown tally to an incredible 23.
An eighth world title, which would see him go out on his own ahead of Hendry, continues to elude him and looks less likely as each year passes. However, Hendry argues that more major tournament success for O’Sullivan cannot be ruled out if he can get somewhere close to his brilliant best.
“On his day, when he plays his best, he’s still the best player in the world,” Hendry told Mirror Sport ahead of tournament, where he will be on punditry duty for BBC.
“But those unbelievable performances are becoming fewer and farther between. It would be stupid to write him off because if he plays at his best, he will do it [win the big tournaments]. But there’s no doubt it’s going to get harder the older he gets.
“You’ve got Judd Trump, who’s turning into a winning machine and Kyren Wilson is having an incredible season as world champion. There’s so many great players out there. If Ronnie plays his best, he probably still is the best player. But he doesn’t do it that often.”
With other interests in the game, Hendry, who retired for a second and final time earlier this year, feels O’Sullivan’s competitive juices have faded. The five-time UK champion added: “He’s always looked at other things beyond [competitive] snooker.
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“He’s got an academy in Saudi Arabia, he does a lot of exhibitions in China which makes him a lot of money. So maybe the competitive side is not as high up in his priorities as it used to be.
“It’s going to be interesting to see if he apples himself to tournaments likes the UK Championship, the Masters and the World Championship.”
As defending champion and No.1 seed, O’Sullivan will open the tournament against Barry Hawkins at 1pm on Saturday.
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