According to the latest news on December 17, 2021, Beijing time, six-time world champion O'Sullivan said after the game that he hopes he can win the 921 Crucible three more world championships, although he has now realized that he cannot reach the level he once was. O'Sullivan doesn't think he's going to have a good turnaround at the moment because he knows it's a change from age, so he doesn't expect to be able to play well in the future. After talking about these things, O'Sullivan also publicly apologized to fans for his poor performance against Wafi, because he felt that he had failed the expectations of fans and spectators, after all, many snooker fans bought tickets for him.
O'Sullivan: I want to win three world championships
Although O'Sullivan is now aware that he can't be as good as he used to be, he still hopes to win three more World Championship trophies. O'Sullivan said: "I'm not going to be doing well in the next three years, but I want to win three more world titles and I now know that there are some dangerous signs in my situation. If I don't get better over the next three years, it's time for me to put away my clubs. I still love snooker, but you can't play that low quality ball, at least I can't. Of course I want to be able to keep going in the sport, but if I can't play quality games, then I should retire to make way for young players. ”
O'Sullivan: I'm not in much the same shape as I used to be
Although O'Sullivan still wants to compete for the trophy on the stage of the World Championships, he believes that his ability will not show any better. O'Sullivan said: "You can see a lot of problems in my results, I have won a lot of competitions. But now they are being eliminated in the semi-finals, quarter-finals and finals, and there's a reason for that. I'm not as good as I used to be, and I must admit that I'm not one of these self-deluded players, I'm realistic, I know exactly where my abilities are. I also know what else I can do, I know where I am, so I know I'm not going to get any better. When you show up in a game, you know what's the difference between you and what you used to be. Mistakes that were not made before are now often made, and this is what age brings to you, which human beings cannot overcome. So I thought about it, when I can't play a good game anymore, I will voluntarily quit. ”
O'Sullivan: I have to apologize to the fans
O'Sullivan, now 46, needs to win another world championship to match Hendry's record. But he has yet to reach the final in 2021/22, and he didn't win a title last season. O'Sullivan wasn't happy with his performance against Wafi, so he publicly apologized to his fans for a poor start. O'Sullivan said: "The crowd traveled thousands of miles to watch the game, but my performance was sorry for their expectations, which made me feel embarrassed and sad. Thankfully, I played better towards the end of the game, which was good for the fans who paid to watch the game, and they dropped their afternoon jobs and, of course, wanted to see some decent snooker games. In fact, the fans' viewing experience was as bad as the first three innings. If Wafi plays well enough, the score will be 4-0 and I will definitely be eliminated. So I now understand what Steve Davis once said, which is that when you rank past your age, it's time to put away your clubs and retire. I'm not going to get any better right now, I'll know when to give up, I don't like how I did today. If this happens often in the future, then retirement will be the best option, and I don't want to leave a bad impression on the audience because that would make me embarrassed. ”