Ronnie O’Sullivan has suggested that illness could hamper his hopes of success at this week’s Dafabet Masters. The Englishman complained of feeling “very dizzy” on Tuesday but his ailments did not seem to affect him as he thrashed Marco Fu 6-0 to book his place in the last eight. In a thoroughly one-sided affair at Alexandra Palace, Fu did not pot a ball in the opening four frames, with his only points coming courtesy of a foul on the blue by the five-time world champion.
O’Sullivan played in typically swashbuckling style, racking up 649 points to his opponent’s 35 as he brushed Fu aside in just an hour and 22 minutes. He will now meet Mark Allen in the last eight on Thursday after the Northern Irishman saw off Luca Brecel 6-3. The Rocket is aiming for a record eighth Dafabet Masters title and is the 11/10 favourite to win in north London.
O’Sullivan, who is 3/10 to beat Allen (5/2) says he felt off colour on Tuesday and believes a lack of magnesium could hinder his hopes of success. “To be honest with you I’m really struggling. I’ve got a virus or something and I feel very dizzy,” said O’Sullivan. “I was just playing off instinct. I thought ‘don’t stop, don’t think, just pot balls’. I’ve been feeling like that the last five or six days. “I think it’s maybe a lack of magnesium, that’s what my nutritionist told me. I’ve been eating well the last four months and maybe overdone the exercise and made myself a bit ill.”
Dafabet Masters odds available at Dafabet.