Even though O’Sullivan is still remarkable, his continued success begs important questions regarding the future of snooker.
It seemed fitting that Ronnie O’Sullivan was hailed as one of the most amazing instances of endurance in international sport when he became the oldest player to win the UK Snooker Championship, exactly thirty years after he had been the youngest champion in the same competition. A half-lifetime of success, three decades of glitz and glamour, and thirty years at the top: O’Sullivan is an incredible performer.
But there was a big catch to his incredible victory—something O’Sullivan himself had been worried about for a long time: who else is there? Whose breath is there on the great man’s dress shirt collar? In what precise place is the talent of the next generation pushing him aside? Snooker is, in actuality, increasingly becoming an old man’s game.
The entire notion that a 48-year-old would be competing for major awards seemed absurd when O’Sullivan won the UK title for the first time as a lively teenager. However, O’Sullivan is not the only one advocating for middle-aged people. He, Mark Williams, Neil Robertson, John Higgins, Shaun Murphy, and Mark Selby are the only people in their forties among the current top 10; the other three are in their thirties. Luca Brecel is the youngest at 28 years old.
Snooker is undoubtedly a game where experience counts more than anything else. It takes time to become proficient at the table, to comprehend the procedures, and to build up enough mental toughness to be able to see an opponent break 100 and not give up easily. It is truly an indictment that only one man in his twenties, let alone his teens, could make it to the top 10.
O’Sullivan discusses his concerns on the dearth of young talent in his sport in the recently released documentary about him. This is not an act of arrogance on his part, conveying the tired lament of the aging artist not as it was in my day. For that, he is far too astute an analyst. No, this is a sincere worry about the fate of the game he adores when his generation becomes weary of the circuit’s never-ending grind. Even said, considering the absence of competition, the majority of them might still be winning titles in their seventies at this rate.
Other sports do not operate in the same way. True enough, 22 years after donning the green jacket for the first time, Tiger Woods won the Masters at Augusta in 2019. However, that was a very unusual one-off. Even though he defeated a field with actual depth, he hasn’t been able to match that level of performance in the past. Concurrently, the American collegiate golf system’s production line for golfers becomes even more robust. Every year, there are more and more young players vying for spots in the main leagues.
Youth is everywhere in darts too, the indoor relative of snooker. Not least in the field this month in Ally Pally for the World Championships, where 16-year-old Luke Littler isn’t just there to make up the.
On the other hand, finding a venue to play darts is simple. In snooker, the problem is in the numbers. A large number of people must step up to the plate in order to build excellence. It also needs the game to be visually appealing enough to draw in players who are talented. O’Sullivan’s father used to drop him off at the neighborhood snooker club on school breaks so he could play for hours. Snooker was child care for him. This is unlikely to occur in the present day, mostly due to the limited number of snooker clubs remaining throughout the nation. nearly all closed down a decade ago after the smoking prohibition was implemented because they were unable to draw in customers. The ideal opportunity for a child to address a ball on a table is if his family has a snooker table at home. And how many homes in Britain have one of those to hand?
China is the future, according to the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association, and a wide range of competitors will undoubtedly arise due to its enormous popularity there. However, despite decades of snooker play in China, no one in the top 10 is ranked there. Ding Junhui, ranked 12, is the highest. Moreover, at thirty-six, he barely speaks for the future.
The bright side of this story of sharp decline is that O’Sullivan will continue to be competitive for major titles. As things are going so well, he may stay at the top for a another thirty years.
