Andre147 PGC wrote:
Ronnie was definately on decline especially after 2009 when his long game was gone and he couldn't get decent results, and on pressure situtions he just couldn't handle them and missed many match winning opportunities. But then Steve Peters came around and he found a diferent way to approach the game, not getting upset at all if he didn't play his best in a match and his temperament is way better now, so you could say 2009-2011 period was his period of decline but then in 2012 he rediscovered good form again so honestly I don't know when his next decline, and most likely definitive, will occur. We can safely say it will when he reaches 40 but of course that's not an exact figure that when every player reaches 40 he'll start a decline, and Ronnie has defied all odds in recent times and could have at least another 3 or 4 very good years if he truly wants to, because a large part of his game is how much he really wants to continue winning titles and pursuing records, mostly Hendry's like World Titles, Masters and UKs, number of total Majors won, most centuries, that sort of thing. His season management has definately been helpful for him because he only plays in the tourneys he really wants to and usually does well in those he enters. Mentally he is fresher than most players, and that helps him a lot.
A question of semantics I suppose but I think there is a clear difference between "decline" and "lack of form". "Decline" I believe is the natural and irretrievable age related decline that has all the normal hallmarks of age related decline we have come to recognise from the likes of Hendry, Davis etc. In that sense I don't think he was on the decline after 2009, he just had a drop in form, as was noted by Everton, his performances and demeanor were so odd at the time they defied normal categorisation.
How much Ronnie really wants it, good point, it's an important factor, I don't really know the answer, but I do know that he really missed the buzz and discipline of tournament play during his sabbatical. We might well see him carry on playing his reduced schedule until he drops off the tour in spite of his misgivings about playing through decline.