The Rocket heads into the Crucible as one of the favorites for an unprecedented eighth crown. Despite racking up five tournament wins this year and pocketing a cool £1.16 million in prize money, the 48-year-old ace isn’t all smiles about his recent stints at the baize.
He lost out in the Tour Championship final just before Sheffield as he was denied a sixth title of the season. However, O’Sullivan has reiterated his desire to keep on playing while he’s still miffed with his game.
“The only one I haven’t got is eight world titles,” O’Sullivan told The Sun. “It’d be nice to win it.
Would it complete my life? Nah.
I’m trying to separate life from work. When I have had 2-3 months where I have been playing great, then that would be the time when I’ll hang my cue up.”
O’Sullivan feels that it wouldn’t be the right time to win an eighth world title next month as he doesn’t feel like he has been in a good place with his game. O’Sullivan remains the hot favorite for the Crucible crown, just ahead of Judd Trump.
The talented pair are due to meet in the semi-finals providing they both make it that far. On the other hand, the darts sensation was only 16 when he wowed Alexandra Palace at the World Darts Championship (WDC), despite a final loss to Luke Humphries.
The Nuke will continue playing against seven of the best dart players in the world in a mini-tournament in a different city every Thursday until the final in May. Elsewhere, Mark Selby and Mark Allen are both highly-fancied, while Mark Williams and Neil Robertson are also both in contention.
Last year’s champion Luca Brecel has shown brighter form since the turn of the year but is a general 18/1 chance for a repeat win.
