Ronnie O'Sullivan has called on the snooker authorities to make an innovative change in order to help players during tournaments.
The 48-year-old says having a doctor at every tournament that players can discuss their issues with would help them combat 'the most frustrating game on the planet'.
O'Sullivan has not hidden the fact that he has worked with a sports psychiatrist to help him overcome his mental demons.
The Rocket was close to walking away from snooker before he was introduced to Steve Peters in 2011, who he has since credited as a 'father figure'.
Ronnie O'Sullivan has called on snooker authorities to have a doctor for players to speak to at tournaments
Eurosport
O'Sullivan still battles with his mental health and pulled out of the Welsh Open last week due to 'stage fright' and 'anxiety'.
No player has won more World Snooker Championships or Masters titles than O'Sullivan, but even the best are sometimes unable to cope with the pressures of the sport.
This week, fellow player Anthony McGill opened up on the mental struggles he faces.
After beating three-time world champion Mark Williams, McGill told Eurosport: "I just hate the way I play snooker. It’s just so slow all the time and I don’t like it.
"I don’t do it on purpose, it’s just because I doubt myself.
"It’s up there [pointing to his head]. It’s a tough game between the ears."
O'Sullivan is on punditry duty in Llandudno after deciding he was not in the right state to play.
He gave an immediate reaction to McGill's comments, outlining how snooker can have a negative effect on a person's mind.
O'Sullivan responded: "You can play with a broken foot, a broken arm, but if your head’s bad you can forget trying to play this game.
"Sometimes you might get away with it but temperament is everything. The game gets to all of us.
"It’s the most frustrating game on the planet without a doubt.
"If you ask all 128 players if they struggle with it most of the time, the answer would probably be yes.
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Ronnie O'Sullivan has opened up on the struggles snooker players face
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"Maybe with the odd exception of John Higgins, Neil Robertson who are so good technically that they might have less frustrating days. It’s just the nature of the beast."
O'Sullivan then claimed that having someone present at tournaments for players to speak to would help.
He says he sometimes needs to get his feelings off his chest in order to give him the best chance at the table.
O'Sullivan added: "You’d do well to get a doctor in for every tournament, have his little surgery around the corner and any player that felt like they were in a bad place could go in there for 10 or 15 minutes.
Ronnie O'Sullivan has often spoken about his mental health struggles in snooker
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"Sometimes that’s all you need, someone who knows what you’re going through, who understands the difficulties of the game.
"Get it off your chest, it wasn’t that bad, let’s go again tomorrow.
"I have full respect for this game and the players who play it."
