Neil Robertson's crucial changes inspired 'amazing turnaround' after Crucible woe

It's been a rollercoaster couple of years for Twelve months ago, he didn't even qualify for the after an alarming downturn in form. But the Thunder from Down Under is back where he belongs and heads to the Crucible as one of the favourites to capture a second world title, 15 years after his first.

"At the start of the season, I was projected to back ranked somewhere in the 40s in the world," recalls Robertson, who has won the World Grand Prix and the English Open this season. "So to be provisionally ranked heading towards number nine is an amazing turnaround. I can't think of anyone who has done anything like it before because I'd gone from number one or two in the world a couple of years ago to missing out on the Crucible!

"So it was a dramatic fall followed by an incredible U-turn. Some people will consider this my best-ever season, considering I've had to reclimb the mountain. It's definitely right up there, for sure."

It would be a concern if Robertson, who begins his Crucible campaign on Saturday afternoon, didn't know what triggered his freefall and then what led to his stunning resurgence. However, the 43-year-old is crystal clear on both fronts.

On the former, he explains: "Emotionally, I started to think about Australia a bit more, 'Am I going to start winding down and move back to Australia?'

"That off-season [in 2023], I guess you could say I was lazy. I just took too much time off. I didn't start the season particularly well. My head was in a different space. It was a strange feeling.

"I was thinking, 'Can I do this a bit more from Australia with all the China tournaments? Can I go to Australia for a couple of weeks [between tournaments]?'

"I was allowing a lot of emotion to come into my thinking. You can't be like that. You need to be ultra-focused to make it as a top sportsman. I just lost my focus and then stopped enjoying the game.

"I didn't enjoy competing, which I usually love, and I fell back into the trap of That started the slippery slope. Last season, my confidence was quite low and players were a lot more confident against me. I was practising hard but couldn't buy any results.

"Homesickness came into and there was some mental frailty. To be an elite sportsman, you can't have that, you've got to be like a cyborg, as brutal as it is to say. You can't show any weaknesses.

"I then decided to go to Australia around Christmas for a couple of months, which affected my ranking because I missed a couple of tournaments. But that trip was key because it gave me a mental reset as I'd not been home for four years."

Robertson took positive action after the shock of not reaching the World Championship by building a team around him. He enlisted the help of fellow professional and long-time friend Joe Perry and sports psychologist Helen Davies, who has worked with Olympic athletes and top tennis stars.

"I'd had enough of the bad results," says Robertson, who recently took up golf, which has "I needed to stand up and be accountable and not feel sorry for myself.

"I set up a team. With snooker players, we don't really have the finances of a tennis player or a golfer. But I've had a good career, so I thought I'd reinvest money back in myself, and it's paid massive dividends.

"Joe is like a sounding board. He's with me for the tournaments in the UK. We talk a lot about strategy. It's similar to what Lee Walker is to Mark Williams, like a coach.

"Joe doesn't get involved in any technical stuff, although if there was a massive red flag, he would say so because he knows my game as well as anyone. He can spot what's right about my game and what's not. It's going really well."

On working with Davies, Robertson explains: "I'd always been my own sports psychologist in a way, or so I thought. Straight away after the first session, I thought, 'Wow, how have I not been doing this for the last 10 years?'

"She was probably the main factor in the turnaround. She really gave me the tools to move forward with things, set a plan, mindset, breathing. She was awesome."

Therefore, Robertson feels like a new player as he heads to the Crucible, even if he isn't the biggest fan of the venue and believes it is time for the tournament to move to a bigger venue.

"Going into it with this fresh mindset is important," he says. "I've been really aggressive with my game this season, and it's paid dividends.

"I've been able to get onto rolls with four or five-frame bursts where I've completely taken the match away from my opponent. I've got to take that forward and play every session on my terms. Play attacking and a good brand of snooker that people like watching."