Ronnie O'Sullivan brands UK-based snooker events as 'like a car boot sale' during interview at English Open

The Rocket began his English Open campaign with an easy 4-0 victory over Andrew Pagett despite his ongoing elbow issues but after the match he made his feeling known about The Brentwood Centre.

O'Sullivan, who won the Shanghai Masters last month, is playing in his first tournament in the UK of the season having missed last week's British Open due to injury.

He was quoted in the Metro as saying: "I think it’s important to have good tournaments. I am not saying this is a terrible tournament. But the venues…people walking up and down in the crowd.

"I’d like to see someone get hold of a good promoter, get hold of the tournaments and make them a bit better. Nothing has really changed in 12 years. You just go through the motions in a lot of these tournaments. I don’t want to be ultra-critical but also sometimes the truth needs to be told.

"I don’t know if you have had a walk around this venue or been in the toilets and had a look around. It’s not the greatest. It’s not the most inspiring place to come and play snooker but it is what it is.

"They don’t care here. They just don’t care anymore. When we had tobacco sponsors, they were amazing, they really went out of their way to make all the players feel special. Don’t just ask me, go and ask Stephen Hendry, go and ask some of the players who played then with tobacco sponsors. Just don’t take my word for it.

"Every event was like a special event. Now, it’s just, I don’t know what it is. It’s like a car boot sale. I have always said, it’s like a car boot sale. It hasn’t changed in 12 years. You think it would have got better but it hasn’t.

"I don’t want to sound too down on it but it is what it is. It’s quite hard as a player to turn up at tournaments like this and feel like you want to try. Know what I mean? But you do try because you have pride in performance. It’s not easy.

"If the tournaments are going to be like this, then have every tournament in Asia, have every tournament in Saudi."

When asked to compare British events to those held in China, the seven-time world champion said: "They just make an effort. The crowds, they have a two-table set-up, so you are not playing in a four-table thing where people are moving around. I know it might sound silly but just having a crowd down the side just makes you engage more.

"For me, if you go to Asia, you go to all those fantastic venues, they look after you really well; courtesy cars to and from the games; there is security, so you get to your match and get away without being driven mad. In Asia, they go that extra bit for you. It’s little things like that as a player that mean something to you. The game’s the game. That never changed. But just how you get treated as a player. It means more. Who doesn’t want to be treated well? Who doesn’t want to be spoilt? For me, you get that when you are in Asia.

"Obviously I know there is a travelling thing, but I am prepared to do that now. Just travel to all those tournaments, play in them, try to make them count as they are the bigger events as well. Then if we come home, and I feel like playing in some of these UK events, I will. If I don’t, then I will just take some time out, recharge."

O'Sullivan feels the standard of events in the UK could just sum up a wider issue in society.

He said: "It’s probably not even snooker. I wouldn’t even travel British Airways or Virgin, they have even gone so down the pan. You go Cathay Pacific, you go China Eastern, it’s a different level.

"I don’t know, maybe we are just falling apart as a country. Brexit. Everything has gone to pot. Maybe they are cutting corners so much that I don’t know, maybe it is just done over here.

"Maybe they do need to go to places where they have money. There is no money over here to put on events otherwise I am sure they would. Go to China. Have the whole tour in China. You could still have the World Championships here if you want. But take everything out there. Keep us out there. I don’t really want to play in these events, you know."