Crowd favourite Ronnie O’Sullivan has revealed the secret weapon he hopes will propel him to the Maplin UK Championship – a run on the Shropshire hills!O’Sullivan eased into the second round at the Telford International Centre yesterday with a 9-6 win over Michael Holt, though he was made to work for it.

And the ever popular star revealed how a run up the slopes of the Wrekin with Telford Athletics Club had helped relax him for the start of his challenge.

“That’s what I do for most of my tournaments, but especially this season,” said O’Sullivan.

“It’s been great for me to meet some fellow people I share a common interest with and helps me on my stay up here because it’s something I really look forward to.

“They’ve been great, really nice. It was wet but it was really nice.”

O’Sullivan survived an on-slaught from Holt – who came back from 5-3 down to lead 6-5 – reeling off four consecutive frames to set up a clash with Mark King today.

The two-time world champion was also dismissive of reporters’ questions regarding his three-year run without landing a ranking title.

“I’m actually on suicide watch lately. People around me and noticed it’s bothering me and affecting me,” he said, with a mischievous grin on his face.

“I’m just hoping my fellow players around me will be kind enough to let me get my confidence back and my self-esteem and get back on the ranking trail. It’s really hard work.

“It would be nice to win a ranking event but I’ll let you make a big deal out of it. It’s not much of a big deal for me but hopefully it will come soon.”