Ronnie O'Sullivan progressed to the last 32 of the Wuhan Open with a 5-2 victory over Ashley Carty, but the seven-time world champion was far from satisfied with his display. He admitted that his performance was "pretty bad really" and that he expects to play poorly every time he steps to the table.
O'Sullivan critical of display
O'Sullivan's highest break in the match was just 59, and he was fortunate that Carty missed several opportunities to punish him. The 50-year-old believes he has not been at his best for four years, and his performance against Carty came as no surprise to him.
"My performance was pretty bad really," O'Sullivan said. "You have to call it out. I'm not going to lie. I'm not going to try to delude myself and say there was some good stuff."
"It has been pretty bad for a long time, so I expect to play pretty bad every time I go out there. I know I don't have anything to prove and that is what everyone keeps telling me."
O'Sullivan misses dominating
Despite his frustration, O'Sullivan admitted he misses the feeling of playing well and dominating the table. "However, for my own selfish reasons, I miss playing well and dominating the table, beating anyone who is in front of me. I miss that feeling, but there is nothing I can do about it," he said.
O'Sullivan will face China's Yao Pengcheng in the last 32 at 7am UK time on Tuesday. His chances of a deep run have been boosted by Wu Yize's early exit, after the world champion suffered a shock 5-4 loss to Artemijs Zizins on Monday. Zizins will now face Stephen Maguire in the same time slot as O'Sullivan's match.
World Championship deadline
Last month, O'Sullivan revealed he has set himself a deadline of 2028 to beat Stephen Hendry's record of seven World Championship titles. He told World Snooker Tour: "I'd love to win another World Championship. I've got two attempts at it. Three years previous, I wasn't cueing well enough, so I feel like if I can find a bit of cueing find some form at Sheffield… if I don't do it this this season or the next season, then it'll definitely never happen."
"But I'm pleased with my career. I'm happy with how things have gone, and I just want to try and enjoy these next two years. I'll reassess it in 2028 and if things are really going well, and I've surprised myself, then maybe you can extend it but you have to be realistic. I'm definitely not going to be playing qualifiers put it that way."
"I'm not going to play qualifiers. You won't be seeing me go down to Barnsley trying to win qualifying matches and all that sort of stuff. I have to be realistic. If that happens, then obviously that's the end of my career. But hopefully, I can keep going for at least another two seasons."
