Mark Allen battles against depression before the World Snooker Championship 2011
English cueman Mark Allen has to fight something else before he takes on Matthew Stevens at the Crucible Theatre. He will battle against his depression first before he attempts to clinch the World Snooker Championship 2011 starting from his first round match
next week.
The Englishman got himself diagnosed with depression but denied any possibility of pulling out of the most prestigious stage of the game in Sheffield. Allen will take on Welshman Matthew Stevens in the most important match of his life on Tuesday.
The Antrim cueist’s defeat against Stevens will eliminate him out of the top 16 players which can be a big hurdle for his career. However, his family puts his health first rather than his first match at the Crucible Theatre.
The 25-year-old has not won a single major title yet, though he reached the semi-final stages of six events but crashed out. It must have been due to mental pressure and frustration. He had a tremendous amateur career before he turned pro. However, ever
since he started his international snooker, he has been struggling to make his mark.
Mark Allen’s father Ronnie Allen has confirmed that the world number 11 Allen will definitely play at the championship as he is getting the required treatment to get rid of his depression.
“We’ve known for about a year that something wasn’t right. It’s been building up and building up. He had good days and bad days but now we know what is behind it. He is now receiving counselling. He’s not really affected when he’s playing. It’s more the
time in between — the travelling, the hanging around airports,” said Ronnie Allen.
Things like depression are not new in sports especially in snooker where mind works more than body and bears the intensity of pressure that builds up before and during the match.
The former world champions Ronnie O’Sullivan and Graeme Dott have both suffered from the same mental conditions. O’Sullivan is facing the same problem even now and is consulting a sports psychiatrist Dr Steve Peters to get rid of the problem.
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