Only Ronnie O’Sullivan could be among the favourites to win an event he might not even play.

Days before the World Championship at the iconic Crucible in Sheffield, the participation of snooker’s most famed player is still up in the air.

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Having withdrawn from five ranking events on medical grounds, The Rocket is set to make a last-minute decision on the World Championship, giving himself ‘as much time as possible’.

O’Sullivan, who has spoken candidly about falling out of love with snooker over the last three years, angrily snapped his cue in January and recently admitted he is yet to find a suitable alternative.

But if there is one thing that will motivate him to compete above all else, it is surely this: sporting immortality.

Many consider O’Sullivan to be the most supremely talented player ever – and he has broken almost all the records.

Except one. And that is why the greatest-of-all-time debate still splits opinion.

That is because the 49-year-old is level with Stephen Hendry on seven world titles.

talkSPORT host Andy Goldstein famously grew up with O’Sullivan in Essex, spending his childhood years around The Rocket and a number of other snooker legends.

This is his verdict…

If O’Sullivan breaks the all-time record, where would that achievement rank in sporting history?

“With Ronnie and Stephen, you’ve always had that question, who’s the greatest of all time? Their careers are completely different,” Goldstein began. 

“Stephen did his World Championships in, like, one decade. Over nine years, he won seven world titles, got to two other finals as well. So for what he did… he stayed at number one for most of the 90s as well.

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“What Stephen achieved was unbelievable. Ronnie’s done it over three and four decades.

” So it’s really difficult to answer the question: who’s the greatest of all time?

“I think if Ronnie were to win an eighth… that answers the question.

“At the moment, it’s flip of a coin, because on their day, they’re both unbeatable.”

What have you made of Ronnie’s prolonged absence?

Goldstein continued: “I think it’s really interesting with Ronnie. You never know which Ronnie you’re going to get.

“I don’t think even Ronnie knows which Ronnie we’re going to get and whether or not he plays in it. 

“He’s broken his cue, he’s tried maybe three or four others, and he still hasn’t found the right one yet.

“With Ronnie, if he opened up his eyes on the first day of 17 days of play at Sheffield and thought, ‘I’m going to play and all I’ve got is a broom handle’ – he could play, and he’d probably win it as well, because he’s done it before.

“One of the years he won the World Championship, he played one competitive match or in one competitive tournament and that was it. And he lived on a farm and he was mucking out sheds and then he went all the way and won it.

“So you could never tell with Ronnie, he’s got such a natural ability and natural talent. There’s no one even close to him when it comes to what he can do. He doesn’t really need to practice.

“He obviously says he does, but he can just take a cue out of a case that he’s not played for weeks and weeks, and months and months, and just wipe everyone away. 

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“If you’d have asked me about two months ago whether or not I think he’s gonna be in it, I would have said without a doubt 100%, but now I’m not too sure. 

“I hope he plays – and if he does – I think every single player will want to avoid him.”

So you think he can win it? 

“Yeah. He won’t be the favourite, but he’ll certainly be in the top three or four. 17 days is a long, long time. It’s a long format.

“Even the first round is first to 10, best of 19, and then the next couple of rounds of first to 13, best of 25. It’s such a long horn, it obviously takes a lot out of him. 

“What he has to go through for those 17 days… I know that mentally it’s really tough for him and everyone else involved.”