Luca Brecel takes his own path, which happens to go through Mallorca (Picture: Getty Images)
Luca Brecel does things his own way and that is as clear as ever at the current Northern Ireland Open.
The 2023 world champion got his campaign off to a winning start on Sunday by edging out He Guoqiang 4-3 in Belfast, with typically unusual preparation for the match.
It was not a high quality game and the Belgian Bullet admitted that flying into Belfast from Mallorca on the morning of the match wasn’t ideal.
‘The early flight this morning from Mallorca didn’t help,’ he told Eurosport. ‘Three hours, quite early, it was a rough flight as well. No excuses, but that’s why I wasn’t that sharp today.’
Brecel has been in Mallorca doing a lot of cycling in the sunshine, which sounds lovely, but former Masters champion Alan McManus questioned if it is the best preparation for a ranking event.
‘I don’t look at it that way,’ said Brecel. ‘I don’t look at it like a ranking event, I just see it as a game today, for me it’s like practice, I’m totally honest.
‘I just love playing, I don’t love playing because of the ranking points or because of the money, I just love playing. If it’s here or Spain or at home in practice, it doesn’t matter to me, it’s all the same. That’s why I look like I don’t take it serious, but I actually do.’
Brecel after beating He on Sunday (Picture: Instagram/luca.brecel)
McManus, who would have been quite the opposite in his preparations during his playing days, suggested Brecel may not appear as committed to the game as he should be. Asked if he would say that was an unfair assessment, the Bullet said:’No I wouldn’t, I would agree, because I have different priorities in life to other players, maybe. That’s how I see it.
‘Maybe as a snooker fan it’s difficult to support me. Maybe it’s easy because you never know what’s going to happen.
‘That’s the way I live my life, obviously I can see it’s different to other players but that’s the way I want to live and I enjoy it. I’ve been cycling the last few days in Mallorca, it’s not the preparation other players maybe would take but I do and I enjoy it.
‘I can turn up any tournament and win it or I can lose first round, that’s how it’s always been in my career. I prefer it that way. That’s the funny thing about it.’
Brecel is back in action in Belfast on Wednesday (Picture: Getty Images)
The 29-year-old then revealed that he has not only been putting in the hours on the bike, he has been putting in zero hours on the practice table over the last month.
‘I do feel good actually on the table. I’m not as sharp as I could be, especially now for this tournament because I haven’t played for four weeks, so I don’t expect to be sharp,’ he said.
‘I know I’m …read more
Source:: Metro
