There are few sportsmen on the planet who separate public opinion more so than Ronnie O’Sullivan. He has hordes of adoring fans, as well as people who think he is ruining snooker’s image.

After taking a year out from snooker, O’Sullivan returned to action last week seeking to retain his crown at the World Championships at the Crucible Theatre. So far at least, it looks like he had never been away cruising into the final against Barry Hawkins.

He may not always be at the top of the world rankings but whenever he is at the top of his game he is without doubt the best in the world, possibly the best ever. However there is a dark side to the man they call “The Rocket.”

His problems with alcohol, drug addiction and depression have been well documented in recent years. The imprisonment of his father, Ronnie O’Sullivan snr in 1992, with an 18 year sentence for murder, hit Ronnie jnr hard. His father has not been present for any of his son’s triumphs having been imprisoned a few weeks before Ronnie turned professional.

However it is the combination of O’Sullivan’s genius on the snooker table as well as his desire to please the crowd coupled with his troubled past and contempt for authority which puts him in a group of select sportsmen like him.

Recent memory is full of sportsmen who have won the hearts of fans all over the world with their incredible talent mixed with their bad boy attitudes. One only has to look to the headlines last week when Liverpool striker Luis Suarez bit the arm of Chelsea defender, Branislav Ivanovic. He was slapped with a ten match ban and there were calls for him to be sacked. Suarez’s talent is undeniable but he, like O’Sullivan, is prone to controversy in between his heroics.

World number one golfer Tiger Woods was outwardly a consummate professional and an advertisers dream; inwardly he was hiding dark secrets about his private life. When the truth finally came out, his life and professional career were in tatters. However Woods, much like O’Sullivan battled his way back to the top of the world rankings once again.

Ian Botham was another sportsman who was no stranger to controversy during his playing days. Even now as a cricket commentator, his strong views split opinions in the game. During his playing days he was England’s hero, he even had a series against Australia named after him due to the role he played in the 1981 Ashes. However his penchant for cannabis and alcohol, coupled with his incredible all round displays for England, helped made him a cult figure.

What all these sportsmen and many more like them have in common is their ability to entertain the crowd. Would their raw skill and ability to win tournaments be enough to satisfy their fans without the added extra of their contempt for authority and troubled pasts? Well possibly, but that isn’t wholly what attracts fans to men like O’Sullivan. It is their outlook on their sport which interests the public as well as their ability to be successful. The attitude that they are their sport. Without them their sport would not be what it is with them.

Perhaps a fitting definition of O’Sullivan and flawed geniuses like him was given by snooker Generalissimo, Barry Hearn when he said, “He’s a total nutcase- but what a character!”