Ronnie O’Sullivan has ‘career-threatening’ injury as Rocket sparks concerns

Ronnie O’Sullivan has suggested that the current elbow injury he is managing at the English Open could become ‘career-threatening’ unless he gets it properly fixed. The Rocket is looking to win the tournament for a second time and got off to the perfect start with a 4-0 win over Andrew Pagett on Monday. But he said his elbow problem could stop him from winning more major titles unless it is sorted out for the long term.

O’Sullivan was not performing at his very best despite the margin of victory, with the 47-year-old being forced to manage a painful bout of tennis elbow. He has been struggling with the condition for around two years and it visibly flared up during the match, although it was not enough to stop him from cruising into the next round.

The man from Essex later revealed that his injury could risk stopping him from winning more major events if it fails to ease up, with the issue not compatible with playing snooker at the highest level on a long-term basis.

“It could potentially be career-threatening as far as playing top-level snooker goes if it stays like this,” said O’Sullivan. “I wouldn’t be able to play. I might be able to compete in the odd match here or there, but trying to win tournaments without playing power shots I’d be an absolute million, I wouldn’t be able to do it.

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“So I have to get it fixed and keep it fixed, be careful, take no risks and not go mountain biking. It’s painkillers this week, then rehab and then injections if I need to.”

O’Sullivan went on to explain that he has been suffering from tennis elbow since 2021, although it was not until last year that it began to cause major problems for him. Speaking to Eurosport about his experience with the injury, he said: “It started in 2022, I had it before in 2021 but it was alright.

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“I went into the gym and lifted too many heavy weights and I could barely lift a cup of tea up, so from that moment onwards it’s just been very weak. The injections sort it out but then you aggravate it, you do something and it just goes back to not so good.”

O’Sullivan pulled out of last week’s British Open due to ‘medical problems’ and will be desperate to avoid being denied the chance to win the English Open over the coming days. He will face Jackson Page in the next round on Wednesday, with the young Welshman hoping to spring a surprise by sending O’Sullivan out of the tournament early on.

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