Talking Point  RSS feed | About

Ronnie O'Sullivan

The line between genius and madness is terrifying small, and is none more evident that in the case of Ronnie O'Sullivan.

O'Sullivan is probably the greatest player to ever pick up a cue and produced snooker from the gods yesterday when completing a sensational 147 against Mark Williams. It was the ninth of his career, his third at the Crucible - the Mecca of snooker - and took eight minutes and 47 to complete.

That is nearly three and a half minutes slower that it took him to compile an astonishing maximum against Mark Price in 1997. The Rocket must be getting slow in his old age.

O'Sullivan is 33 this year but shows no signs of exorcising the demons that have plagued his extraordinary career and seen him labelled a flawed genius. O'Sullivan is in good company.

Diego Maradona, George Best, Paul Gascoigne, Shane Warne, Ian Botham, Alex Higgins and Jimmy White, to name just a few, all fall into the same category.

It seems, more of than not, that a god-given talent must be accompanied by a Machiavellian streak and a self-destruct button.

The colourful O'Sullivan is inclined to veer between the sublime and the ridiculous more than most. He is equally capable of making headlines for all the wrong reasons as he is for the breathtaking quality of his snooker, some of which transcends the sport.

I mean, how supremely talented must you be to be able to score a century with either hand?

But O'Sullivan has struggled to cope with both of his parents being sent to prison - his father for murder and his mum for tax evasion - and this has manifested itself in a series of controversial incidents.

During a 15-year professional career, O'Sullivan has been found guilty of assaulting an official at the World Championship, tested positive for marijuana and fined £20,000 for walking out of a quarter-final with Stephen Hendry.

O'Sullivan, however, went one step too far at the recent China Open. He was heard making lewd comments and suggestive comments following his quarter-final defeat to Marco Fu and could still find himself in hot water.

But what do the game's governing body do? Take action and deny the sport and paying public of its star attraction?

O'Sullivan will probably be hit with a heavy fine and warned as to his future conduct.

It is all likely to be forgotten, however, if O'Sullivan trailblazes his way to another World title.

No-one has ever won snooker's blue-ribbon tournament when making a 147. O'Sullivan, however, is not interested conforming.

WHAT a heart-felt moment it was to see Richard Hill, the decorated England and Saracens back-row forward, perform an emotional lap of honour after Saracens gut-wrenching defeat at the hands of Munster on Sunday.

Hill has fought back from two career-threatening knee operations, injuries which would have finished off lesser individuals, to play again, and a place in the Heineken Cup Final would have been a fitting way to bring the curtain down on his glittering career.

New England team manager Martin Johnson should make the call to Hill one of his first, ensuring the talent, humility and professionalism of a true great is not lost to the game.

FINALLY, I fancy Barcelona and Chelsea to contest the Champions League Final.

Barca have too much attacking quality not to score at Old Trafford and I can't see Manchester United - likely to be without Wayne Rooney - scoring twice against a Barca defence fortified by the return of kingpin Carlos Puyol.

I also fancy Chelsea to make it third time lucky and defeat Liverpool, thus ensuring the much-maligned Avram Grant succeeds where Jose Mourinho failed. That won't be bad going for a manager dubbed the Average One, will it?

2:58pm Tuesday 29th April 2008

Print   Email this   Comment