Welshman Dominic Dale is entering the final months of a stellar career, as he prepares to hang up his cue to focus on broadcasting and commentary.
After the World Championship, the 53-year-old will call time on a career which dates back to 1992. Over that period, he's picked up two ranking crowns at the 1997 Grand Prix and the 2007 Shanghai Masters, as well as a victory at the Shoot Out back in 2014.
Next week Dale will compete in Berlin's iconic Tempodrom at the Machineseeker German Masters, where he goes up against Tom Ford. We caught up with the Spaceman to look ahead to Berlin and beyond...
Dominic, thanks for speaking to us, first of all how do you feel ahead of your last few months competing on the professional circuit?
“I have three competitions left. The German Masters, the Welsh Open and the World Championship. It is strange to say this, but I actually can’t wait for those months to pass so I don’t have to play competitive snooker anymore. When I’m commentating, I watch and think that I probably could get close to that standard. However, to do so I would have to be practising four hours a day and at 53 years old there’s no way I can do that anymore. I get a lot of aches and pains when I’m practising for long stints.
“I want to focus on doing the commentary, because I really enjoy it. The decision to retire was an easy one. To have a career in sport, which lasts so long, you need to have a killer instinct. That needs to be part of your makeup for a long time. That’s not really a good thing to have in my opinion. I will be glad to let that go and become a normal person again, whatever that is these days. To have more empathy and compassion. That is something you tend to lose the longer you have that killer instinct."
There were a couple of occasions you looked like you might fall off tour and lose your professional status. You said if that happened, you would have retired then. How pleased are you to be going out on your own terms?
“Absolutely, because to look back and think I’ve been a professional for 33 years without ever dropping off tour. That takes some doing. I wouldn’t want to have to start again and try to manage that now, with the current standard. When I turned professional, there were seven or eight of the top 16 players now that were fantastic. They all are now. The strength in depth is amazing too. I lost to Zak Surety in a China event this season and his standard of play was incredible. Back in the day you could nominate the players that would be tough and the ones that you thought you couldn’t lose to. The lower ranked players didn’t score heavily when they got in. Now if you leave someone a long pot you expect them to knock it in and then they make a big century from it."
Looking back on your career, what moments would you reflect on as some of your highlights?
“When I was young, I always wanted to go to China. So to actually go to Shanghai and win a tournament there was amazing. It is so westernised, the food there is fantastic and the Bund is impressive. My favourite dancer was Dame Margot Fonteyn and she was brought up in Shanghai. I’m going to go back there one day. I love China. Winning the Shoot Out was great. Sometimes it is the venues that you play at that mean a lot. The Blackpool Tower was quite a thing. What an atmosphere it was. It would be great for the players that haven’t experienced that if it went back there one day."
How much are you looking forward to playing at the Tempodrom at next week's German Masters?
“I used to live quite near the Tempodrom. I’m looking forward to going out to Germany to play one more time. I’ve got a week of hard practice ahead of me to prepare for playing Tom Ford. The tournaments are few and far between for me now. That is quite nice really. To be practising for event after event at my age is something I don’t want to do. There are things I want to do like go to operas and ballets in Covent Garden which I can’t, I like to go for runs and walks in the Cotswolds. I have to keep in mind that I want to do all of that and live my life.
“Ive actually played in a single table setup in the Tempodrom as after I won the Shoot Out I was invited to a speed snooker event there and I beat Shaun Murphy in the final! It’s a fantastic atmosphere. I always enjoy going out to Germany. I have to pick and choose my hotels wisely, because if I’m with all of the players I end up having to translate the menus for them all! I tend to help out, although I’ve forgotten a lot of German now."
You qualified for the Crucible at last season's World Championship. How determined are you to try and do so again one last time this year?
“It was ten years since I’d been at the Crucible. I have played some of my best snooker there, so I was astonished with how much I struggled with the atmosphere. Getting through three qualifiers was quite an achievement. I had a bit of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome before the match, so I had to temper my practice a bit before the game with Kyren. That was a real shame. It would be lovely to think my last ever match as a snooker player was at the Crucible. That would be a dream. If I could match my achievements of last season and qualify it would be amazing, but it is very tough."