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Ronnie O'Sullivan calls out 'nonsense' claims made about his methods - 'people dont see it'

Ronnie O'Sullivan has hit out at speculation that a lack of games has impacted his form.

[Ronnie O'Sullivan in the first round match against Ross Muir of Scotland on day 1 of the World Open Snooker 2026. ]

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Ronnie O'Sullivan came out as 5-0 winner over Matthew Selt in the World Open. (Image: Tai Chengzhe, VCG via Getty Images)

Ronnie O'Sullivan has passionately dismissed suggestions that his limited playing schedule should leave him 'rusty' during competitions. He has also rejected the notion that he doesn't train as intensively as some of his rivals.

The seven-time world champion has competed in just three events since celebrating his 50th birthday late last year. His most recent appearance saw him record a 5-0 win over Matthew Selt in the World Open on Wednesday.

The encounter saw him complete breaks of 77, 138, 96 and 52 to secure a last 16 meeting with Shaun Murphy. The game was just his sixth since his birthday in December.

O'Sullivan's most recent ranking trophy came two years ago, prompting speculation that the shortage of tournaments is affecting his performance. However, the player himself firmly rejects this view.

"I always prepare well. Always. I know people question me," he stated.

"Do I practice enough? Do I do this enough? I mean I've had that ever since I was a kid.

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"Everyone seems to think I just turn up. But that's not the case. I mean I prepare harder probably than any other player.

"I work harder than probably any other player. Some people just don't see it.

"I think they just assume that I've just got to get out of bed and pot balls. But that's not the case. I work very, very hard."

"With me it's not about how much I practice or how many tournaments I play. If I'm cueing well, I don't need to play a lot of matches. "Everyone says, 'Oh he hasn't played enough, he's rusty'. It's just complete nonsense as far as I'm concerned."

"There's players that play 20 tournaments a year and hardly win a match. So if that was the metaphor for playing well and playing in lots of tournaments, then I should be the worst player in the world.

[Ronnie O'Sullivan in the third round match against Matthew Selt on day 3 of the World Open Snooker 2026. ]

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Ronnie O'Sullivan has hit back at claims surrounding his lack of table time. (Image: Tai Chengzhe, VCG via Getty Images)

"Because obviously I play a lot less than everybody else. I don't need to practice six or seven hours a day.

"Everybody seems to think you do. I don't need to play every tournament but everybody seems to think you do."

"But ever since I was a kid I've always told that everything I was doing was wrong and I was never any good. So you tend to just try and ignore the noise and just keep going about your business."

Murphy secured the clash with O'Sullivan with a 5-1 victory over Xu Si. The-43 year-old put together a break of 120 in the final frame, narrowly missing out on a 147 after failing to pot the yellow.

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