‘You have to dig deep’ – O’Sullivan feels ability to handle pressure key to Crucible success

Ronnie O’Sullivan feels the World Championship will be won by whoever has the best “mental capacity” to handle the pressure of the Crucible.

The world No. 1 was happy with his performance, but is looking to add sharpness to his game to be “lethal” when it matters.

“I was happy,” O’Sullivan said in the Eurosport studio. “I enjoyed it, It felt alright out there, cued okay for a change, so nice.

“I feel like I am playing and cueing half decent, which is good.

“When my game is good I am happy. If my game is not good, like it has been for a long time, I am a miserable person.

“I am never going to cure it, as I have tried. It is what it is, try and get your game right and be a bit more satisfied with yourself.”

O’Sullivan was happy to get through a match without having to dig extremely deep.

“A lot of matches I have had to throw the kitchen sink at sessions,” he said. “You can’t keep throwing the kitchen sink at it, and that match [against Page] I was second, third gear most of the match. I was able to play within that comfort zone.

“If I get my game right I can hopefully cruise a bit more and be more lethal when I need to be.”

It is a venue that brings major pressure for players, and O’Sullivan feels being able to handle the demands of playing in the intimate venue is key to success in Sheffield.

“It takes me a little while to get used to it coming back even after all these years as it is such a small space,” O’Sullivan said. “You are not used to playing in such a small environment with the crowd on top of you.

“It just takes time to adjust before it gets normal. It is a hard venue and it finds you out. There are great players who have come here and never won it. That is what the Crucible can do.”

O’Sullivan got the job done quickly against Page, but is not fazed by the prospect of matches getting close.

“I am not really bothered,” he said. “If it has to go tight it has to go tight. Every World Championship I have won I don’t think anyone has ever got within three or four frames of me [in the final].

“Just let the tournament unravel, it goes how it goes.

“It is the same for everybody. We have all got to play the same number of matches, the same amount of frames. The toughest survive. If that happens to be me, great.

“It never gets any easier. It is who has got the mental capacity to handle the pressure. You are not going to have it all your own way. It’s the guys that don’t like that situation that don’t end up doing that well here.

“You have got to enjoy it and embrace it and see it as a pleasure.

“You have to dig deep and find a way to perform well under pressure.”