Ricky Walden is the International Champion after beating Mark Allen in todays best-of-19 frames International Championship 10-7 after a brilliant week of snooker from Ricky. Walden's week saw him defeat David Morris 6-3, Zhou Yuelong 6-5, Joe Swail 6-4, Jamie Burnett 6-1, Robert Milkins 9-2 ahead of todays 10-7 victory in the final against Mark Allen in a week that saw Ricky climb up to 8th in the World (so he's now seeded top 8 for the UK Championships), while Mark Allen climbed up to 6th in the world and Robert Milkins climbed back into the top 16 with Mark Williams now just behind in 18th. It's a bad week though for Judd Trump though as he's down to No.11 in the World which is his lowest ranking for some time I believe and Stephen Maguire is beginning to hover down in 14th and with lots of money to come off in February's Welsh Open he could do with some big ranking performances.
Back to today now though, and this is a quick little round-up of what happened today in the final between Ricky Walden and Mark Allen:
Ricky Walden 10-7 Mark Allen - The match started off pretty evenly in the first couple of frames with Walden having breaks of 49 and 59 to make it 1-0 before breaks of 40 and 45 in the next from Allen levelled it up at 1-1. The next 2 frames went to Walden with a run of 64 in the third as Ricky went into the mid-session interval with a 3-1 lead. That lead was soon cancelled out by Mark Allen though winning a scrappy fifth on the colours before making a magnificent century break of 113 to level that match up at 3-3, with just the three frames left in the afternoon session. Both players had good chances in the seventh frame but it was Walden that took the frame on the colours for a 4-3 lead. Ricky couldn't really get things together in the final 2 frames of the session as breaks of 47 and 52 from Allen helped him to taking both and the 5-4 lead going into the final session of possibly 10 frames in the evening. At this stage of the match you very much felt that it was anyone's match.
Ricky Walden was looking better and on top form again at the beginning of the final session as he won all of the opening three frames in turning a 5-4 deficit into a 7-5 lead. Runs of 47 and 45 in the tenth were followed by a 40 in the eleventh after a 44 from Allen, and the best of a lot an 85 in the twelfth showing the top form that got him to the final. Mark Allen hit back by taking the next two frames either side of the interval. He made it 6-7 at the mid-session break thanks to a run of 68 and he squared the match up once more at 7-7 with a lovely 74. What did Ricky have in response to being pegged back once again? Well the answer is some of the best snooker he's played all week given the circumstances and position of the match. A contribution of 85 put him back in front at 8-7 with several good recovery pots in there. Yet another century this week for Walden put him one away from victory at 9-7 with a brilliant 103 in that sixteenth frame showing that he wasn't going to shy away as the pressure went. In the seventeenth frame, Ricky made an early 54 before having to play safe, Mark then got lucky to cover a red that he put over the corner, but Walden was even luckier to miss a long pot sending reds round the table, only for one of them to drop in, a fluke that saw him on the way to a further 62 that sealed the frame, match and tournament with a fantastic display from the Chester man giving him a 10-7 win.
It really has been a really enjoyable week of snooker at the International Championships with some really brilliant games throughout the week including a complete classic of a semi-final between Mark Allen and Mark Williams before a fitting final to the end the event, and the best man coming out on top in Ricky Walden. Next week it's onto the Champion of Champions event at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry which can be watched on ITV4 in the UK and will be another great week of snooker which starts off tomorrow and ends next Sunday (with a day off on Thursday) and I will have updates from that throughout the week as I have this week with the action in Chengdu. I hope you've all had a brilliant week and enjoyed reading my pieces throughout.
Sunday, 2 November 2014
Champion of Champions Preview
After a busy week of snooker out in China at the International Championship, it's straight back onto the horse for the worlds top snooker players as they head to the Ricoh Arena for the Champion of Champions. The second staging of this event sees the winners of snooker events all over the snooker calendar in the last year (along with the 4 highest ranked players not already involved to make up the full 16). The tournament was brought about last year as a replacement for the Premier League that could be played over one week instead of several Thursday nights and to give ITV4 another snooker event to cover, which i'll add they did superbly last year.
A few early details on the week are that we have 4 "groups" that will be played on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday (a day off given on Thursday so there isn't a clash with ITV4's Europa League football coverage) before the semi-finals on Saturday and the final on Sunday. The format for the groups sees two best-of-7 group semi-finals in the afternoon before the winners of these two games play each other in the group final that evening over the best-of-11 so busy days for the players. Then on Saturday the semi-finals will see the winner of group 1 play the winner of group 4 and the winner of group 2 play the winner of group 3 over the best of 11 frames before the best-of-19 frames final on Sunday.
In terms of ITV4's coverage it's very much the same deal as last year with Jill Douglas presenting things while Clive Everton, Neal Foulds and Alan McManus provide delightful commentary in the box and analysis between frames and matches back in the studio. I can't wait for the full afternoons and evenings that will be covered by ITV4 with the same brilliant set-up they had last year sure to be employed by them, and fully praised by us fans once again.
Now it's time for me to take a look at each of the groups in turn, looking at the 4 players in each, how they've qualified and how I expect them to run this week in Coventry.
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs Stuart Bingham
Shaun Murphy Vs Marco Fu
Defending champion Ronnie O'Sullivan as always will be one of the hot favourites for this week. The Premier league was one of his favourite events so he'd have been thrilled to win it's replacement event in it's first year last year. As well as being defending champion Ronnie also qualifies via wins at the Masters and Welsh Open earlier this year. He played in the International Championships in China last week so it will be interesting to see how he goes in back to back tournaments with a fair bit of travelling wedged in between. However, Ronnie looked in good form on the way to the quarter-finals, although when truly tested for the first time against Mark Williams he struggled a little. The good news for O'Sullivan fans ahead of this week I guess is that this tournament is in the UK and not China, because Ronnie isn't a fan of all of the travelling, and feels much more comfortable at home in English events in front of really big crowds cheering him on, which is something he misses a little big during games in China. Putting that all together I think you'd be a fool to say that he won't be right up there for the victory this week.
Last years runner-up Stuart Bingham has got a very tough group semi-finals against Ronnie O'Sullivan to start him off in a repeat of last years final which of course Ronnie won. Stuart has beaten him since then in last years UK Championship, but overall O'Sullivan has the better of the head to head between them. Stuart has been in good form in 2014, especially in the last few months with wins in the Shanghai Masters and a couple of Asian Tour events this season and last to put him into the Champion of Champions. I guess the thing for Bingham is turning these big wins in Asia into big wins in the UK, and he certainly has the confidence and support behind him to make it happen, whether that is this week or not. With such a tough game first up, he may be on the back foot from the start but if he can come through that start he'll have as good a chance as any of taking the title this week.
Shaun Murphy is another of the men in form right now after his win in Bulgaria and making the final of the non-sanctioned invitational General Cup in Hong Kong. He qualified for this event with that win in the Bulgarian Open last month as well as earlier wins in 2014 at the Gdynia Open and the Haikou World Open so it's been a very productive year for Murphy. The win in Gdynia allowed him to re-discover all of that confidence and belief that he'd lost over the couple of years previous. He may have under performed recently in Chengdu, losing in the Last 32 but I think that part of that could well have been from having 3 weeks away from home and I'm sure he'll be happy to be back in the UK now and with a few days at home before he has to play in Coventry, he'll be fresh and raring to go once again. His record against Marco Fu is good with wins recently in the General Cup, World Championships and the Masters in January. With good form and confidence behind him, I think Shaun is a good candidate to make it to at least reach the group final, though whether he gets any further could well depend on the player that faces him.
Marco Fu qualified for this event as the highest ranked player not already qualified and I think that sums up the last year for Marco Fu pretty well. He's been inconsistent with his performances this year and never really looked like winning a tournament since making the final of the International Championships a year ago. Since then it's been a very mixed bag for Marco with early round exits at the UK's, German Masters and Shanghai Masters amongst other events, and while he made the quarter-finals of the International Championship this week, he had to battle hard in a lot of those games and he only really looked good from start to finish in the game he lost against Robert Milkins. If Marco is to be the best players at the best events and have good runs he needs to find some consistency in his game, and I'm sure that will come if he continues to work hard, which needs to be his goal in the short term.
Group Finalist: Shaun Murphy
Group Winner: Ronnie O'Sullivan
Mark Selby Vs Steve Davis
Judd Trump Vs Stephen Maguire
Mark Selby is the lead man in group 2 and the leading man in the tournament really as World Champion and World number 1. This season has been slowing in starting for Mark really having not entered Australia, or qualified for the recent International Championships. He did however win the Riga Open very early in the season as well as reaching the Shanghai Masters semi-finals. The key for Mark in this event is that he will be very fresh having had almost a month off from competition, and he's a threat in every tournament he enters big or small, but this is the beginning of a busy period for Selby now, so I expect his game to be finely tuned for this week after plenty of rest and hard practice. With a nice game to ease himself into the event as well, I think when things get tougher he'll thrive on them.
Steve Davis is here as the World Seniors Champion, but as a man that is no longer a full time playing member of the tour it's going to be hard for him to come here and get any kind of a respectable result against the World champion and World No.1, but it'll be nice to see him competing on the big stage, because at the end of the day his time playing in these events is coming to an end.
Judd Trump qualified for this event thanks to winning the Championship League in March and then the Australian Open at the beginning of July, his first full ranking event win for nearly 2 years. Judd's looked in reasonably good touch this season despite an early exit at the International Championship. He's also gone well in the European Tour events at the start of this season and his confidence seems to be right up again and he'll fancy his chances of having a really big run this week. Judd is another player that thrives on the big crowds in these big UK events and that will surely spur him on this week (and certainly a lot more than the virtually non-existent crowds in China), but with the first round being best-of-7 and playing a tough player like Stephen Maguire he'll need to get going fast or he can go home.
Stephen Maguire has managed to qualify for this tournament by winning the invitational Six Reds World Championship in Thailand, but in regular events his form has been very poor and he needs to sharpen up ahead of this week. He suffered an early exit in the International Championships, simply because he couldn't kill the match off against Noppon Saengkham because (based on the frame scores and breaks in the match) he was by far the better player. The one thing that will immediately fire Stephen Maguire up this week after a very poor season of early exits in most, if not all tournaments, is the fact that he's playing Judd Trump in the first round. There's something about his meetings with Judd that really seems to fire the Scotsman up, which is evident from the 9-2 lead that Maguire holds on the recent head to head. Often the head to head doesn't give a player any advantage, but that's a little bit different when you know you've beaten a top top player in virtually all of your meetings in the last 2 or 3 years. His match with Judd will be a very good one, and I'm sure it'll go down to the wire, but going into the group final I don't think that will help the winner out too much.
Group Finalist: Stephen Maguire
Group Winner: Mark Selby
Neil Robertson Vs Ali Carter
Mark Allen Vs Ricky Walden
Neil Robertson is another of the top seeds in this event having won the UK Championships and Wuxi Classic within the qualifying period, but just lately Neil has been a bit quiet in tournaments, and in the middle of a busy run in period ahead of Christmas he certainly needs to pick his form up with so many other top players challenging for titles and on top form. Last 32 exits from a large number of frames in front at the Shanghai Masters and International Championship, is very uncharacteristic for the Australian and I'm sure he'll be just a little bit concerned about that, and he certainly can't take the same liberties this week against the rest of the games elite. He won't be too worried though because his season started off well with a successful defence of his Wuxi Classic title and making the final of the Australian Open the week after and if he can bring that form to Coventry he will of course be a big challenger. He really enjoyed the set up of this event and the atmosphere along with all of the players, and hopefully for him that will fire him into some form.
It'll be wonderful to see Ali Carter return to full professional tour snooker this week for the first time since the World Championships in April, after undergoing chemotherapy for lung cancer. I'm sure it will be emotional for him to come back like this in a big tournament in front of a big crowd that will provide a great atmosphere and a fantastic ovation for Ali on his return. I'm glad that he's managed to sneak through the back door and qualify as the 16th man by being the 4th highest ranked player not already qualified for the event (with his seeding being locked at No.13 in the world for the rest of the season). Having played out in the Hong Kong General Cup (an invitational tournament not fully sanctioned by World Snooker) and winning that event in the final beating Shaun Murphy, as well as other top players like Mark Davis, Liang Wenbo and Marco Fu in his first competitive tournament since his treatment, which is one hell of an achievement and one that he's described as one of the best of his career. Carter is certainly not coming into this event cold then and he's not here to make up the numbers and he'll give Neil Robertson a very tough match in the group semi-finals. The result of that match for me will depend on how Neil responds to the pressure Ali will put him under.
Mark Allen is in top form at the moment and has been the best player on tour since the beginning of this season. So far this season he has reached 2 full ranking event finals and 2 European Tour event finals, winning one at the Paul Hunter Classic and really does seem to be on top of the world right now. To best of those runs came at the International Championships where he showed a lot of bottle once more to beat Mark Williams 9-8 in the semi-finals in a classic before losing to Ricky Walden in the final. Mark will be full of confidence and have plenty of belief, and I think we're getting to the stage now where Allen is due a Triple Crown title and he's in the form now to do it. A bet on Mark Allen to win the UK or Masters in the next couple of months could certainly yield some money.
Ricky Walden initially qualified for this as the 3rd highest ranked player not already qualified, but he'll be happy that his name can now go in as the International Champion having beaten Mark Allen 10-7 in the final today. Ironically the two guys are playing each other again on Friday in the group semi-final over the much shorter best-of-7 frames format. That match could simply come down to how both players have been able to prepare after the International final which is just 5 days before this match and who has the biggest "post tournament hangover" with such a short turnaround. While Ricky is obviously in good form, so too is Allen and he'll be more determined to go one better this week, and I think that the winner between these 2 will win the group and make the semi-finals. I just fancy Mark Allen to sneak that victory in another tense game.
Group Finalist: Neil Robertson
Group Winner: Mark Allen
Ding Junhui Vs Dominic Dale
Barry Hawkins Vs John Higgins
Ding Junhui may have had a very slow start to this season, but he qualifies for this event after victory at the China Open in April and the German Masters in February. His season so far has seen him fail to qualify for both Wuxi and the International, while missing Australia. He has however won the first Asian Tour event of the season back in June, along with making the quarter-finals of the second and the semi-finals of the Shanghai Masters so he's not desperately out of form coming into this. While Ding may have lost those qualifying games in Barnsley I think that is simply down to motivation issues. There's no way a player like Ding should lose those games, because you'd expect even his B game would beat them. However, having to play qualifying matches in Barnsley for ranking events in China may seem a bit stupid to him and with the draws he had he may have come into this games cold on practice with a lack of motivation. With a big tournament this week in front of a big crowd you'd hope that he'd come into the event very sharp after a couple of weeks off and motivated to play his best snooker, because when he wants to play well, he very often does and if things go his way he can be untouchable.
Dominic Dale qualifies for this event having won the Snooker Shoot-out event back in January in Blackpool and it will be very interesting to see how he goes in this tournament this week. He was in very good form at the back end of last season after winning the shoot-out. He made the quarter-finals of the World Championship and was only a deciding frame from making the semi-finals. This season though he has failed to fire in any of the European Tour events or ranking events of any sort so, while I wouldn't say he is struggling, he isn't in the kind of form that would give him a really big run at this event, although he could cause Ding Junhui some early problems and put him under some early pressure in the group semi-finals. If he could manage that then who knows, he has as good a chance as anyone else in this group.
Barry Hawkins hasn't been in the best of form over the course of the last year, qualifying for this event from his win at the Players Championship Finals in March. He did also reach the World Championship semi-finals at the end of last season and the semi-finals in Wuxi and Riga at the start of this season. In the last couple of ranking events he has had Last 32 exits, both of which were to Mark Williams in Shanghai and Chengdu, but given how Mark Williams played in those games it's not as if Barry has been playing that badly. Barry also doesn't have great memories of this event last year losing out to Ding Junhui in the group semi-finals, but playing a very out of sorts John Higgins in the first round this year gives him a much better chance. Even if he's not at the top of his game, I'd expect him to grind out a result, in a style that he's become much better at in the last couple of seasons since his climb up to 5th in the World Rankings.
John Higgins has only managed to qualify for this event by being one of the highest ranked players not already in it. His last ranking title actually came at the 2012 Shanghai Masters over 2 years and his last win of any sort came at the Bulgarian Open event in June 2013 which is now 16 months ago. It's been a tough time for John with results not going his way on the table at all. So far this season John has managed to make it to the Sunday (Last 16 onwards) of any of the European Tour events, while in the ranking events he suffered a Last 16 exit in Australia, Last 32 exits in Shanghai (his first round match), the Wuxi Classic and a Last 64 thrashing 6-1 to Li Hang at last weeks International Championship. John was handed an early exit at last years tournament also, in the group semi's to compatriot Stephen Maguire 4-3 and I can't see him beating Barry Hawkins right now, simply because he's totally out of form and there's absolutely no rhythm to his game, but it only takes one week to turn things around.
Group Finalist: Barry Hawkins
Group Winner: Ding Junhui
With 16 fantastic players involved this week I'm sure we're going to see a week of top quality once again, just as we did in this event last year (which I thought was one of the best on the calendar) and I'm sure with the matches we have in store there could be some more classics in store again. I'll be back with updates throughout the week on how each group goes and then updates on the latter stages on Saturday and Sunday as well.
A few early details on the week are that we have 4 "groups" that will be played on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday (a day off given on Thursday so there isn't a clash with ITV4's Europa League football coverage) before the semi-finals on Saturday and the final on Sunday. The format for the groups sees two best-of-7 group semi-finals in the afternoon before the winners of these two games play each other in the group final that evening over the best-of-11 so busy days for the players. Then on Saturday the semi-finals will see the winner of group 1 play the winner of group 4 and the winner of group 2 play the winner of group 3 over the best of 11 frames before the best-of-19 frames final on Sunday.
In terms of ITV4's coverage it's very much the same deal as last year with Jill Douglas presenting things while Clive Everton, Neal Foulds and Alan McManus provide delightful commentary in the box and analysis between frames and matches back in the studio. I can't wait for the full afternoons and evenings that will be covered by ITV4 with the same brilliant set-up they had last year sure to be employed by them, and fully praised by us fans once again.
Now it's time for me to take a look at each of the groups in turn, looking at the 4 players in each, how they've qualified and how I expect them to run this week in Coventry.
Group 1 (Wednesday)
Group Semi-Finals Draw:Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs Stuart Bingham
Shaun Murphy Vs Marco Fu
Defending champion Ronnie O'Sullivan as always will be one of the hot favourites for this week. The Premier league was one of his favourite events so he'd have been thrilled to win it's replacement event in it's first year last year. As well as being defending champion Ronnie also qualifies via wins at the Masters and Welsh Open earlier this year. He played in the International Championships in China last week so it will be interesting to see how he goes in back to back tournaments with a fair bit of travelling wedged in between. However, Ronnie looked in good form on the way to the quarter-finals, although when truly tested for the first time against Mark Williams he struggled a little. The good news for O'Sullivan fans ahead of this week I guess is that this tournament is in the UK and not China, because Ronnie isn't a fan of all of the travelling, and feels much more comfortable at home in English events in front of really big crowds cheering him on, which is something he misses a little big during games in China. Putting that all together I think you'd be a fool to say that he won't be right up there for the victory this week.
Last years runner-up Stuart Bingham has got a very tough group semi-finals against Ronnie O'Sullivan to start him off in a repeat of last years final which of course Ronnie won. Stuart has beaten him since then in last years UK Championship, but overall O'Sullivan has the better of the head to head between them. Stuart has been in good form in 2014, especially in the last few months with wins in the Shanghai Masters and a couple of Asian Tour events this season and last to put him into the Champion of Champions. I guess the thing for Bingham is turning these big wins in Asia into big wins in the UK, and he certainly has the confidence and support behind him to make it happen, whether that is this week or not. With such a tough game first up, he may be on the back foot from the start but if he can come through that start he'll have as good a chance as any of taking the title this week.
Shaun Murphy is another of the men in form right now after his win in Bulgaria and making the final of the non-sanctioned invitational General Cup in Hong Kong. He qualified for this event with that win in the Bulgarian Open last month as well as earlier wins in 2014 at the Gdynia Open and the Haikou World Open so it's been a very productive year for Murphy. The win in Gdynia allowed him to re-discover all of that confidence and belief that he'd lost over the couple of years previous. He may have under performed recently in Chengdu, losing in the Last 32 but I think that part of that could well have been from having 3 weeks away from home and I'm sure he'll be happy to be back in the UK now and with a few days at home before he has to play in Coventry, he'll be fresh and raring to go once again. His record against Marco Fu is good with wins recently in the General Cup, World Championships and the Masters in January. With good form and confidence behind him, I think Shaun is a good candidate to make it to at least reach the group final, though whether he gets any further could well depend on the player that faces him.
Marco Fu qualified for this event as the highest ranked player not already qualified and I think that sums up the last year for Marco Fu pretty well. He's been inconsistent with his performances this year and never really looked like winning a tournament since making the final of the International Championships a year ago. Since then it's been a very mixed bag for Marco with early round exits at the UK's, German Masters and Shanghai Masters amongst other events, and while he made the quarter-finals of the International Championship this week, he had to battle hard in a lot of those games and he only really looked good from start to finish in the game he lost against Robert Milkins. If Marco is to be the best players at the best events and have good runs he needs to find some consistency in his game, and I'm sure that will come if he continues to work hard, which needs to be his goal in the short term.
Group Finalist: Shaun Murphy
Group Winner: Ronnie O'Sullivan
Group 2 (Tuesday)
Group Semi-Finals Draw:Mark Selby Vs Steve Davis
Judd Trump Vs Stephen Maguire
Mark Selby is the lead man in group 2 and the leading man in the tournament really as World Champion and World number 1. This season has been slowing in starting for Mark really having not entered Australia, or qualified for the recent International Championships. He did however win the Riga Open very early in the season as well as reaching the Shanghai Masters semi-finals. The key for Mark in this event is that he will be very fresh having had almost a month off from competition, and he's a threat in every tournament he enters big or small, but this is the beginning of a busy period for Selby now, so I expect his game to be finely tuned for this week after plenty of rest and hard practice. With a nice game to ease himself into the event as well, I think when things get tougher he'll thrive on them.
Steve Davis is here as the World Seniors Champion, but as a man that is no longer a full time playing member of the tour it's going to be hard for him to come here and get any kind of a respectable result against the World champion and World No.1, but it'll be nice to see him competing on the big stage, because at the end of the day his time playing in these events is coming to an end.
Judd Trump qualified for this event thanks to winning the Championship League in March and then the Australian Open at the beginning of July, his first full ranking event win for nearly 2 years. Judd's looked in reasonably good touch this season despite an early exit at the International Championship. He's also gone well in the European Tour events at the start of this season and his confidence seems to be right up again and he'll fancy his chances of having a really big run this week. Judd is another player that thrives on the big crowds in these big UK events and that will surely spur him on this week (and certainly a lot more than the virtually non-existent crowds in China), but with the first round being best-of-7 and playing a tough player like Stephen Maguire he'll need to get going fast or he can go home.
Stephen Maguire has managed to qualify for this tournament by winning the invitational Six Reds World Championship in Thailand, but in regular events his form has been very poor and he needs to sharpen up ahead of this week. He suffered an early exit in the International Championships, simply because he couldn't kill the match off against Noppon Saengkham because (based on the frame scores and breaks in the match) he was by far the better player. The one thing that will immediately fire Stephen Maguire up this week after a very poor season of early exits in most, if not all tournaments, is the fact that he's playing Judd Trump in the first round. There's something about his meetings with Judd that really seems to fire the Scotsman up, which is evident from the 9-2 lead that Maguire holds on the recent head to head. Often the head to head doesn't give a player any advantage, but that's a little bit different when you know you've beaten a top top player in virtually all of your meetings in the last 2 or 3 years. His match with Judd will be a very good one, and I'm sure it'll go down to the wire, but going into the group final I don't think that will help the winner out too much.
Group Finalist: Stephen Maguire
Group Winner: Mark Selby
Group 3 (Friday)
Group Semi-Finals Draw:Neil Robertson Vs Ali Carter
Mark Allen Vs Ricky Walden
Neil Robertson is another of the top seeds in this event having won the UK Championships and Wuxi Classic within the qualifying period, but just lately Neil has been a bit quiet in tournaments, and in the middle of a busy run in period ahead of Christmas he certainly needs to pick his form up with so many other top players challenging for titles and on top form. Last 32 exits from a large number of frames in front at the Shanghai Masters and International Championship, is very uncharacteristic for the Australian and I'm sure he'll be just a little bit concerned about that, and he certainly can't take the same liberties this week against the rest of the games elite. He won't be too worried though because his season started off well with a successful defence of his Wuxi Classic title and making the final of the Australian Open the week after and if he can bring that form to Coventry he will of course be a big challenger. He really enjoyed the set up of this event and the atmosphere along with all of the players, and hopefully for him that will fire him into some form.
It'll be wonderful to see Ali Carter return to full professional tour snooker this week for the first time since the World Championships in April, after undergoing chemotherapy for lung cancer. I'm sure it will be emotional for him to come back like this in a big tournament in front of a big crowd that will provide a great atmosphere and a fantastic ovation for Ali on his return. I'm glad that he's managed to sneak through the back door and qualify as the 16th man by being the 4th highest ranked player not already qualified for the event (with his seeding being locked at No.13 in the world for the rest of the season). Having played out in the Hong Kong General Cup (an invitational tournament not fully sanctioned by World Snooker) and winning that event in the final beating Shaun Murphy, as well as other top players like Mark Davis, Liang Wenbo and Marco Fu in his first competitive tournament since his treatment, which is one hell of an achievement and one that he's described as one of the best of his career. Carter is certainly not coming into this event cold then and he's not here to make up the numbers and he'll give Neil Robertson a very tough match in the group semi-finals. The result of that match for me will depend on how Neil responds to the pressure Ali will put him under.
Mark Allen is in top form at the moment and has been the best player on tour since the beginning of this season. So far this season he has reached 2 full ranking event finals and 2 European Tour event finals, winning one at the Paul Hunter Classic and really does seem to be on top of the world right now. To best of those runs came at the International Championships where he showed a lot of bottle once more to beat Mark Williams 9-8 in the semi-finals in a classic before losing to Ricky Walden in the final. Mark will be full of confidence and have plenty of belief, and I think we're getting to the stage now where Allen is due a Triple Crown title and he's in the form now to do it. A bet on Mark Allen to win the UK or Masters in the next couple of months could certainly yield some money.
Ricky Walden initially qualified for this as the 3rd highest ranked player not already qualified, but he'll be happy that his name can now go in as the International Champion having beaten Mark Allen 10-7 in the final today. Ironically the two guys are playing each other again on Friday in the group semi-final over the much shorter best-of-7 frames format. That match could simply come down to how both players have been able to prepare after the International final which is just 5 days before this match and who has the biggest "post tournament hangover" with such a short turnaround. While Ricky is obviously in good form, so too is Allen and he'll be more determined to go one better this week, and I think that the winner between these 2 will win the group and make the semi-finals. I just fancy Mark Allen to sneak that victory in another tense game.
Group Finalist: Neil Robertson
Group Winner: Mark Allen
Group 4 (Monday)
Group Semi-Finals Draw:Ding Junhui Vs Dominic Dale
Barry Hawkins Vs John Higgins
Ding Junhui may have had a very slow start to this season, but he qualifies for this event after victory at the China Open in April and the German Masters in February. His season so far has seen him fail to qualify for both Wuxi and the International, while missing Australia. He has however won the first Asian Tour event of the season back in June, along with making the quarter-finals of the second and the semi-finals of the Shanghai Masters so he's not desperately out of form coming into this. While Ding may have lost those qualifying games in Barnsley I think that is simply down to motivation issues. There's no way a player like Ding should lose those games, because you'd expect even his B game would beat them. However, having to play qualifying matches in Barnsley for ranking events in China may seem a bit stupid to him and with the draws he had he may have come into this games cold on practice with a lack of motivation. With a big tournament this week in front of a big crowd you'd hope that he'd come into the event very sharp after a couple of weeks off and motivated to play his best snooker, because when he wants to play well, he very often does and if things go his way he can be untouchable.
Dominic Dale qualifies for this event having won the Snooker Shoot-out event back in January in Blackpool and it will be very interesting to see how he goes in this tournament this week. He was in very good form at the back end of last season after winning the shoot-out. He made the quarter-finals of the World Championship and was only a deciding frame from making the semi-finals. This season though he has failed to fire in any of the European Tour events or ranking events of any sort so, while I wouldn't say he is struggling, he isn't in the kind of form that would give him a really big run at this event, although he could cause Ding Junhui some early problems and put him under some early pressure in the group semi-finals. If he could manage that then who knows, he has as good a chance as anyone else in this group.
Barry Hawkins hasn't been in the best of form over the course of the last year, qualifying for this event from his win at the Players Championship Finals in March. He did also reach the World Championship semi-finals at the end of last season and the semi-finals in Wuxi and Riga at the start of this season. In the last couple of ranking events he has had Last 32 exits, both of which were to Mark Williams in Shanghai and Chengdu, but given how Mark Williams played in those games it's not as if Barry has been playing that badly. Barry also doesn't have great memories of this event last year losing out to Ding Junhui in the group semi-finals, but playing a very out of sorts John Higgins in the first round this year gives him a much better chance. Even if he's not at the top of his game, I'd expect him to grind out a result, in a style that he's become much better at in the last couple of seasons since his climb up to 5th in the World Rankings.
John Higgins has only managed to qualify for this event by being one of the highest ranked players not already in it. His last ranking title actually came at the 2012 Shanghai Masters over 2 years and his last win of any sort came at the Bulgarian Open event in June 2013 which is now 16 months ago. It's been a tough time for John with results not going his way on the table at all. So far this season John has managed to make it to the Sunday (Last 16 onwards) of any of the European Tour events, while in the ranking events he suffered a Last 16 exit in Australia, Last 32 exits in Shanghai (his first round match), the Wuxi Classic and a Last 64 thrashing 6-1 to Li Hang at last weeks International Championship. John was handed an early exit at last years tournament also, in the group semi's to compatriot Stephen Maguire 4-3 and I can't see him beating Barry Hawkins right now, simply because he's totally out of form and there's absolutely no rhythm to his game, but it only takes one week to turn things around.
Group Finalist: Barry Hawkins
Group Winner: Ding Junhui
Tournament Runner-Up: Mark Selby
Tournament Winner: Ronnie O'Sullivan
With 16 fantastic players involved this week I'm sure we're going to see a week of top quality once again, just as we did in this event last year (which I thought was one of the best on the calendar) and I'm sure with the matches we have in store there could be some more classics in store again. I'll be back with updates throughout the week on how each group goes and then updates on the latter stages on Saturday and Sunday as well.
Saturday, 1 November 2014
Wonderful Walden and magnificent Mark Allen to contest International Final
Ricky Walden and Mark Allen will contest the International Championship final after they came through 2 very different semi-final matches. The first semi-final was dominated by Ricky Walden, as Robert Milkins couldn't find his best form and was quickly becoming frustrated, while Walden was playing some fantastic snooker as he has done all week and he was in charge of the match from the very start. Ricky led 3-1 at the mid-session break in session 1, before winning 3 of the next 4 to take a 6-2 lead into the evenings final session of nine possible frames. Only 3 frames were needed though as Walden won them all to thrash Milkins 9-2. Meanwhile the semi-final between Mark Allen and Mark Williams was a match of fantastic standard that went right the way down to the wire. Mark Allen took an early 2-0 lead before 2 centuries from Williams levelled it up at 2-2 at the mid-session break of session 1. The next 2 frames were shared but it was Allen who won frame 7 with a century and frame 8 to take a 5-3 advantage into the evening session. The first 2 frames of the evening session were shared but when Allen took the 11th frame he led 7-4 and was 2 frames from the final. Williams hit back though to take the final frame before the interval and then the first 2 after it (including his 3rd century of the match in frame 14) to level at 7-7. Mark Allen won the 15th after needing a snooker, clearing with a great 35 ending in a long pot on the pink and a doubled black. The Welshman dug in and a brilliant 86 forced the decider. The decider saw chances for both players and it was Williams that had the best one, but he missed a tricky last red along the cushion just a few pots from the match and it was Allen that did enough to take the match out 9-8.
The second semi-final was probably the best match I've seen for standard over a full match that I've seen in a very very long time and it's sure to be in my Classic matches of 2014 countdown. What those 2 wins also mean is that, with Allen and Walden already qualified, the final spot in the Champion of Champions for this coming week is Ali Carter's which will mark his full return to the snooker tour (after winning a non-World Snooker sanctioned Hong Kong General Cup in October) since his treatment for Lung cancer.
Semi-Final Results:
Ricky Walden 9-2 Robert Milkins
Mark Allen 9-8 Mark Williams
Final Preview (Best of 19 Frames):
Mark Allen Vs Ricky Walden - Mark Allen and Ricky Walden have been playing some brilliant snooker this week and both guys fully deserve to be contesting this final, as this weeks stand out players (with a special mention in that bracket for Mark Williams too). Mark Allen's road to the final so far this week has seen victories against Nigel Bond (6-0), Martin Gould (6-4 from 0-3 down), Stuart Bingham (6-4), Michael White (6-3 from 1-3 down) and Mark Williams today in that sensational semi-final that Allen won in a decider. Those are far from easy matches and he has a slight disadvantage over Walden who had a much less taxing and mentally tough semi-final and a day off before the final, while Allen had to work hard today (though he made it look effortless) and very little time to relax before the final after such a nerve crunching game. That should affect him too much though because you'd expect the adrenaline of another big final (this is Allen's 4th of the season, 2nd in full ranking events) to get him through any tiredness or mental fatigue after a taxing week of snooker on the road. Mark has kept his recent good form going all week and if he keeps that going for one more game that will make him very tough to beat. Ricky Walden has also been playing sublime snooker this week, having made 7 centuries so far in the 5 matches he's won against David Morris (6-3), Zhou Yuelong (6-5), Joe Swail (6-4), Jamie Burnett (6-1- with 3 centuries in this game alone) and Robert Milkins in a much less mentally fatiguing semi-final. A lot of the players say that having the day off before the final is also very helpful and having not had to work very hard for his last couple of wins he'll be pretty fresh for this final, but it will be interesting to see how he copes when tested in a big ranking final by a top player (something he really hasn't been too much this week) while Allen will be mentally prepared for a tough match having had so many already this week. Ricky Walden is in fine break building form this week, but Mark Allen has been for the last 3 months now and Mark will be absolutely oozing with confidence and I think that he'll be very tough to beat.
Prediction: Mark Allen 10-7 Ricky Walden
It really has been a fantastic week of snooker this week with some really enjoyable matches throughout, with the certain stand outs being Mark Williams matches in the Last 16 against Ronnie O'Sullivan and the semi-final today against Mark Allen, which nothing I could say would do justice for. I'm sure the final tomorrow will finish the week off in style and then it's onto the Champion of Champions straight up on Monday, and my preview for that will be up tomorrow night. The Christmas run in of snooker has well and truly begun.
The second semi-final was probably the best match I've seen for standard over a full match that I've seen in a very very long time and it's sure to be in my Classic matches of 2014 countdown. What those 2 wins also mean is that, with Allen and Walden already qualified, the final spot in the Champion of Champions for this coming week is Ali Carter's which will mark his full return to the snooker tour (after winning a non-World Snooker sanctioned Hong Kong General Cup in October) since his treatment for Lung cancer.
Semi-Final Results:
Ricky Walden 9-2 Robert Milkins
Mark Allen 9-8 Mark Williams
Final Preview (Best of 19 Frames):
Mark Allen Vs Ricky Walden - Mark Allen and Ricky Walden have been playing some brilliant snooker this week and both guys fully deserve to be contesting this final, as this weeks stand out players (with a special mention in that bracket for Mark Williams too). Mark Allen's road to the final so far this week has seen victories against Nigel Bond (6-0), Martin Gould (6-4 from 0-3 down), Stuart Bingham (6-4), Michael White (6-3 from 1-3 down) and Mark Williams today in that sensational semi-final that Allen won in a decider. Those are far from easy matches and he has a slight disadvantage over Walden who had a much less taxing and mentally tough semi-final and a day off before the final, while Allen had to work hard today (though he made it look effortless) and very little time to relax before the final after such a nerve crunching game. That should affect him too much though because you'd expect the adrenaline of another big final (this is Allen's 4th of the season, 2nd in full ranking events) to get him through any tiredness or mental fatigue after a taxing week of snooker on the road. Mark has kept his recent good form going all week and if he keeps that going for one more game that will make him very tough to beat. Ricky Walden has also been playing sublime snooker this week, having made 7 centuries so far in the 5 matches he's won against David Morris (6-3), Zhou Yuelong (6-5), Joe Swail (6-4), Jamie Burnett (6-1- with 3 centuries in this game alone) and Robert Milkins in a much less mentally fatiguing semi-final. A lot of the players say that having the day off before the final is also very helpful and having not had to work very hard for his last couple of wins he'll be pretty fresh for this final, but it will be interesting to see how he copes when tested in a big ranking final by a top player (something he really hasn't been too much this week) while Allen will be mentally prepared for a tough match having had so many already this week. Ricky Walden is in fine break building form this week, but Mark Allen has been for the last 3 months now and Mark will be absolutely oozing with confidence and I think that he'll be very tough to beat.
Prediction: Mark Allen 10-7 Ricky Walden
It really has been a fantastic week of snooker this week with some really enjoyable matches throughout, with the certain stand outs being Mark Williams matches in the Last 16 against Ronnie O'Sullivan and the semi-final today against Mark Allen, which nothing I could say would do justice for. I'm sure the final tomorrow will finish the week off in style and then it's onto the Champion of Champions straight up on Monday, and my preview for that will be up tomorrow night. The Christmas run in of snooker has well and truly begun.
Thursday, 30 October 2014
Allen, Williams, Walden and Milkins to contest International semi-finals
The semi-finals of the International Championships will be contested by Mark Allen, Mark Williams, Ricky Walden and Robert Milkins after they all had some fantastic victories into todays quarter-finals. Mark Allen won 5 frames in a row after the mid-session break against Michael White to come from 3-1 down and beat the young Welshman 6-3. Mark Williams is now the man left flying the flag for the Welsh after he got his first ranking event victory against Ronnie O'Sullivan for 12 years winning 5 frames in a row from 3-0 down against the Rocket before winning a nervy decider. Things were much more clear cut for Ricky Walden who played superb snooker in thrashing Jamie Burnett 6-1, with 3 centuries in that match. He'll now play Robert Milkins who was involved in a very close match from start to finish against Marco Fu, with their never being more than one frame in it as Robert beating the man from Hong Kong in a deciding frame.
Quarter-Final Results:
Mark Allen 6-3 Michael White
Mark Williams 6-5 Ronnie O'Sullivan
Ricky Walden 6-1 Jamie Burnett
Robert Milkins 6-5 Marco Fu
Now that we're into the semi-finals the stakes are of course very high and to match that the format is up to the best of 17 frames with the first semi-final between Ricky Walden and Robert Milkins being played across two sessions tomorrow, while the semi-final between Mark Allen and Mark Williams will be played across two sessions on Saturday before Sunday's final. With the four players we have left I think it's all very even and I wouldn't want to pick a winner from here.
Semi-Final Draw: (Picks in bold)
Ricky Walden Vs Robert Milkins (Friday) - Both Robert Milkins and Ricky Walden are evenly matched players that are actually quite similar in a number of different ways. They both have smooth, rhythmic styles around the table and look at total ease when amongst the balls and good form, as both of these guys have been this week. When they're in form they're incredibly dangerous players, but they can also be very inconsistent across a full season mixing brilliant performances with very poor ones. The last time these 2 met in a major tournament was back in the 2013 World Championship last 16, and on that occasion Ricky Walden ran out the 13-11 winner. So far this week, the general standard of player Robert Milkins has had to beat has probably been slightly tougher than Ricky Walden with Walden beating Morris, Yuelong, Swail and Burnett while Milkins has beaten Pinches, in-form Shaun Murphy, Xiao Guodong and Marco Fu. They've both played very well though and Walden had 3 centuries today against Burnett and another 2 in the Last 64 against David Morris so he's had his best scoring boots on in Chengdu. Milkins has also played incredibly well and kept his opponents under huge pressure round after round but in the last two rounds he's had to work very hard physically and mentally in 2 very tough games to get the victories. Over two sessions I just fancy that Ricky Walden has more left in the tank than Robert Milkins and that could decide this one.
Mark Allen Vs Mark Williams (Saturday) - The battle of the Mark's on Saturday is sure to be a very tense one and a very close one. Both guys have beaten some very good opponents and some very good wins, scoring well and looking confident. Allen so far this week has had victories against Nigel Bond, Martin Gould, Stuart Bingham and Michael White having to work very hard in the last 3 of those games, having to come from multiple frames behind in 2 of those. Mark Williams meanwhile has had comfortable wins against Oli Brown and Barry Hawkins to start the week, while having to work a lot harder against Sam Baird coming from 2-0 and 4-3 down to win 6-4, while he came from 3-0 down to beat Ronnie O'Sullivan today. Coming into this tournament Mark Allen was in great form winning the Paul Hunter Classic and reaching another ET Final as well as the Shanghai Masters and he's continued that this week, although he has gotten off to some slow starts this week in Chengdu. Mark Williams has also had some poor starts in the last 2 games but he's soon sharpened up and he's played some fantastic snooker at times this week, having come into this event with absolutely no form at all. In fact, the two centuries he's made this week are the only two he's had all season which tells it's own story. Allen also has the best of the recent head to head, but as we saw with Williams today, that doesn't always mean you'll win. I think Mark Williams is going to be very tough to stop. Certain things this week, including the chance to stop the rot against Ronnie, have made the Welshman very determined to do well and he's showed this throughout the week, but especially today against O'Sullivan and you could see out there from his frustrations at times that winning that match and going far in this event means absolutely loads to him. At this stage of an event you are always inclined to look at who wants it more, and there's nobody left in this tournament that will want the victory more than Mark Williams such is the determination he's showed and the hard work he's been putting over the last few months on and off the table are testament to the fact that he still thinks he's capable of being back at the top of the rankings.
It looks like a very exciting climax to this tournament and I do have a great likeness for the best-of-17 frame, two session semi-finals that have produced some amazing matches over the years in the UK Championships and I have no doubt that we're going to be in for a couple of cracking encounters over the next two days. So it's time to sit back, relax and enjoy the closing stages of this event.
Quarter-Final Results:
Mark Allen 6-3 Michael White
Mark Williams 6-5 Ronnie O'Sullivan
Ricky Walden 6-1 Jamie Burnett
Robert Milkins 6-5 Marco Fu
Now that we're into the semi-finals the stakes are of course very high and to match that the format is up to the best of 17 frames with the first semi-final between Ricky Walden and Robert Milkins being played across two sessions tomorrow, while the semi-final between Mark Allen and Mark Williams will be played across two sessions on Saturday before Sunday's final. With the four players we have left I think it's all very even and I wouldn't want to pick a winner from here.
Semi-Final Draw: (Picks in bold)
Ricky Walden Vs Robert Milkins (Friday) - Both Robert Milkins and Ricky Walden are evenly matched players that are actually quite similar in a number of different ways. They both have smooth, rhythmic styles around the table and look at total ease when amongst the balls and good form, as both of these guys have been this week. When they're in form they're incredibly dangerous players, but they can also be very inconsistent across a full season mixing brilliant performances with very poor ones. The last time these 2 met in a major tournament was back in the 2013 World Championship last 16, and on that occasion Ricky Walden ran out the 13-11 winner. So far this week, the general standard of player Robert Milkins has had to beat has probably been slightly tougher than Ricky Walden with Walden beating Morris, Yuelong, Swail and Burnett while Milkins has beaten Pinches, in-form Shaun Murphy, Xiao Guodong and Marco Fu. They've both played very well though and Walden had 3 centuries today against Burnett and another 2 in the Last 64 against David Morris so he's had his best scoring boots on in Chengdu. Milkins has also played incredibly well and kept his opponents under huge pressure round after round but in the last two rounds he's had to work very hard physically and mentally in 2 very tough games to get the victories. Over two sessions I just fancy that Ricky Walden has more left in the tank than Robert Milkins and that could decide this one.
Mark Allen Vs Mark Williams (Saturday) - The battle of the Mark's on Saturday is sure to be a very tense one and a very close one. Both guys have beaten some very good opponents and some very good wins, scoring well and looking confident. Allen so far this week has had victories against Nigel Bond, Martin Gould, Stuart Bingham and Michael White having to work very hard in the last 3 of those games, having to come from multiple frames behind in 2 of those. Mark Williams meanwhile has had comfortable wins against Oli Brown and Barry Hawkins to start the week, while having to work a lot harder against Sam Baird coming from 2-0 and 4-3 down to win 6-4, while he came from 3-0 down to beat Ronnie O'Sullivan today. Coming into this tournament Mark Allen was in great form winning the Paul Hunter Classic and reaching another ET Final as well as the Shanghai Masters and he's continued that this week, although he has gotten off to some slow starts this week in Chengdu. Mark Williams has also had some poor starts in the last 2 games but he's soon sharpened up and he's played some fantastic snooker at times this week, having come into this event with absolutely no form at all. In fact, the two centuries he's made this week are the only two he's had all season which tells it's own story. Allen also has the best of the recent head to head, but as we saw with Williams today, that doesn't always mean you'll win. I think Mark Williams is going to be very tough to stop. Certain things this week, including the chance to stop the rot against Ronnie, have made the Welshman very determined to do well and he's showed this throughout the week, but especially today against O'Sullivan and you could see out there from his frustrations at times that winning that match and going far in this event means absolutely loads to him. At this stage of an event you are always inclined to look at who wants it more, and there's nobody left in this tournament that will want the victory more than Mark Williams such is the determination he's showed and the hard work he's been putting over the last few months on and off the table are testament to the fact that he still thinks he's capable of being back at the top of the rankings.
It looks like a very exciting climax to this tournament and I do have a great likeness for the best-of-17 frame, two session semi-finals that have produced some amazing matches over the years in the UK Championships and I have no doubt that we're going to be in for a couple of cracking encounters over the next two days. So it's time to sit back, relax and enjoy the closing stages of this event.
Wednesday, 29 October 2014
Favourites claw it back in Chengdu.
The Last 16 of the International Championships in China was certainly more of a day for the favourites with no really massive shocks on day 4 in Chengdu. Ronnie O'Sullivan had a routine win against Li Hang, while Ricky Walden and Marco Fu came through slightly tougher tests 6-4 in their respective matches. Mark Williams also came through 6-4 against Sam Baird while fellow Welshman made consecutive ranking event quarter-finals with victory over Ian Burns. In the closely matches ties Robert Milkins overcame Xiao Guodong, while Mark Allen got his revenge for the Shanghai Masters final by beating Stuart Bingham. The only slight surprise of the day came as Jamie Burnett thrashed Peter Ebdon who had been in very good form.
Last 16 Results:
Michael White 6-2 Ian Burns
Mark Allen 6-4 Stuart Bingham
Mark Williams 6-4 Sam Baird
Ronnie O'Sullivan 6-1 Li Hang
Ricky Walden 6-4 Joe Swail
Jamie Burnett 6-2 Peter Ebdon
Robert Milkins 6-4 Xiao Guodong
Marco Fu 6-4 Rod Lawler
With todays results the quarter-final draw looks very strong with a number of top players into the last 8 despite all of the early week upsets. In terms of the Champion of Champions spots, Michael White, Mark Williams, Jamie Burnett and Robert Milkins are the only guys left in the International Championship that haven't yet qualified which is good news for Ali Carter who is the next highest ranked to have not yet qualified.
Quarter-Final Draw: (Picks in bold)
Mark Allen Vs Michael White - Mark Allen is in brilliant form so far this season and I said ahead of this tournament that he was due a win in one of the games biggest tournaments and these days the International Championship is probably the biggest outside of the Triple Crown events. With 2 centuries today to get his revenge on Bingham he's showed that he's still in fine form and I expect him to continue that way for the rest of the week. The win at the Paul Hunter Classic with finals at the Riga Open and Shanghai Masters he'll also be full of confidence. He won't get an easy ride tomorrow against Michael White though. Michael is in top form as well after a quarter-final at the Shanghai Masters and another quarter-final here as well as his semi-final in Bulgaria he'll be flying with his belief. However, without the same experience as Allen I'm not quite sure if he's ready to go one better and beat the best players in form to get into ranking finals and win ranking events for this season at least.
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs Mark Williams - As he tweeted today in comical style, Ronnie O'Sullivan has been the thorn in Mark Williams side now for the last 12 years and it's about time Mark got his revenge. Mark Williams seems like he's well up for it this week, scoring well and winning tough matches by coming through with flying colours. He was really up against it today at 4-3 down and 61 points behind in the 8th frame so to win 6-4 from there shows the strength and determination that Mark has this week and nothing will make him more determined than being able to finally get one back on one of his old rivals in Ronnie O'Sullivan. Ronnie has been giving players chances this week, but when they've not punished him he's been sure to jump all over their mistakes. He's looked in mean mood, scoring well and winning matches convincingly. His victory against Li Hang today again showed he was on top form, and he said afterwards he wants an adrenaline rush. Well if he can't get an adrenaline rush and be determined tomorrow to beat one of his old rivals then, he's simply doing something wrong and Mark will be there to punish him, because nothing pumps you up more in sport than playing one of your biggest opponents, and a chance for revenge.
Ricky Walden Vs Jamie Burnett - All credit firstly has to go to Jamie Burnett for his performances this week to beat three very tough opponents in Matthew Stevens, Judd Trump and Peter Ebdon and that will offer him a big boost having said he wasn't enjoying his snooker after last seasons World Championships. However, such big performances and big matches against top players takes a lot out of you and every match in these tournaments becomes harder and harder, and having not been in these positions for a while I don't know how Burnett will perform tomorrow, and this unpredictability doesn't make him a good tip for tomorrow. When Ricky Walden gets to these stages of events he always seems to be playing some solid snooker and producing some solid performances, even if he hasn't had the tough opponents he may have expected at the start of the week. Victories over David Morris, Zhou Yuelong and Joe Swail have seen Ricky having to battle hard as always and at times he's got a little bogged down in matches, although in separate patches it seems as though he's been fluent and making good breaks which is an indicator as to how far Walden can go this week. It will be a tough match for both players and it is sure to be hard fought but I have to think that Ricky will come through.
Marco Fu Vs Robert Milkins - Finally, this match looks to be the closest and toughest call of all of the matches for me. Robert has been very fluent so far this week with wins against Barry Pinches, Shaun Murphy and Xiao Guodong and he's scored pretty well in all of those matches and kept his opponents under pressure from the early stages in order to force plenty of openings. Neither Robert or Marco has been very consistent through the season with their performances, but for the winner tomorrow this event will surely be a turning point to better things to come in the second half of the season. This week has actually been a struggle for Marco Fu, having to battle incredibly hard and give a pint of blood for all of his victories against Liam Highfield, David Gilbert and Rod Lawler. While he's played well in patches he's had to fight incredibly hard at others, and when you get to this stage of a tournament, you need to have plenty of fight in you, but I'm not quite sure how much Marco really has left in him, while Milkins has had a slightly easier ride so far putting him at a mental advantage.
The quarter-final line-up really is looking like a strong one and I'd say that at least 3 of those 4 games have potential to go the full distance tomorrow as the players battle away for places in the best-of-17 frame semi-finals and I'm sure it'll make for very entertaining snooker over the next 4 days.
Last 16 Results:
Michael White 6-2 Ian Burns
Mark Allen 6-4 Stuart Bingham
Mark Williams 6-4 Sam Baird
Ronnie O'Sullivan 6-1 Li Hang
Ricky Walden 6-4 Joe Swail
Jamie Burnett 6-2 Peter Ebdon
Robert Milkins 6-4 Xiao Guodong
Marco Fu 6-4 Rod Lawler
With todays results the quarter-final draw looks very strong with a number of top players into the last 8 despite all of the early week upsets. In terms of the Champion of Champions spots, Michael White, Mark Williams, Jamie Burnett and Robert Milkins are the only guys left in the International Championship that haven't yet qualified which is good news for Ali Carter who is the next highest ranked to have not yet qualified.
Quarter-Final Draw: (Picks in bold)
Mark Allen Vs Michael White - Mark Allen is in brilliant form so far this season and I said ahead of this tournament that he was due a win in one of the games biggest tournaments and these days the International Championship is probably the biggest outside of the Triple Crown events. With 2 centuries today to get his revenge on Bingham he's showed that he's still in fine form and I expect him to continue that way for the rest of the week. The win at the Paul Hunter Classic with finals at the Riga Open and Shanghai Masters he'll also be full of confidence. He won't get an easy ride tomorrow against Michael White though. Michael is in top form as well after a quarter-final at the Shanghai Masters and another quarter-final here as well as his semi-final in Bulgaria he'll be flying with his belief. However, without the same experience as Allen I'm not quite sure if he's ready to go one better and beat the best players in form to get into ranking finals and win ranking events for this season at least.
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs Mark Williams - As he tweeted today in comical style, Ronnie O'Sullivan has been the thorn in Mark Williams side now for the last 12 years and it's about time Mark got his revenge. Mark Williams seems like he's well up for it this week, scoring well and winning tough matches by coming through with flying colours. He was really up against it today at 4-3 down and 61 points behind in the 8th frame so to win 6-4 from there shows the strength and determination that Mark has this week and nothing will make him more determined than being able to finally get one back on one of his old rivals in Ronnie O'Sullivan. Ronnie has been giving players chances this week, but when they've not punished him he's been sure to jump all over their mistakes. He's looked in mean mood, scoring well and winning matches convincingly. His victory against Li Hang today again showed he was on top form, and he said afterwards he wants an adrenaline rush. Well if he can't get an adrenaline rush and be determined tomorrow to beat one of his old rivals then, he's simply doing something wrong and Mark will be there to punish him, because nothing pumps you up more in sport than playing one of your biggest opponents, and a chance for revenge.
Ricky Walden Vs Jamie Burnett - All credit firstly has to go to Jamie Burnett for his performances this week to beat three very tough opponents in Matthew Stevens, Judd Trump and Peter Ebdon and that will offer him a big boost having said he wasn't enjoying his snooker after last seasons World Championships. However, such big performances and big matches against top players takes a lot out of you and every match in these tournaments becomes harder and harder, and having not been in these positions for a while I don't know how Burnett will perform tomorrow, and this unpredictability doesn't make him a good tip for tomorrow. When Ricky Walden gets to these stages of events he always seems to be playing some solid snooker and producing some solid performances, even if he hasn't had the tough opponents he may have expected at the start of the week. Victories over David Morris, Zhou Yuelong and Joe Swail have seen Ricky having to battle hard as always and at times he's got a little bogged down in matches, although in separate patches it seems as though he's been fluent and making good breaks which is an indicator as to how far Walden can go this week. It will be a tough match for both players and it is sure to be hard fought but I have to think that Ricky will come through.
Marco Fu Vs Robert Milkins - Finally, this match looks to be the closest and toughest call of all of the matches for me. Robert has been very fluent so far this week with wins against Barry Pinches, Shaun Murphy and Xiao Guodong and he's scored pretty well in all of those matches and kept his opponents under pressure from the early stages in order to force plenty of openings. Neither Robert or Marco has been very consistent through the season with their performances, but for the winner tomorrow this event will surely be a turning point to better things to come in the second half of the season. This week has actually been a struggle for Marco Fu, having to battle incredibly hard and give a pint of blood for all of his victories against Liam Highfield, David Gilbert and Rod Lawler. While he's played well in patches he's had to fight incredibly hard at others, and when you get to this stage of a tournament, you need to have plenty of fight in you, but I'm not quite sure how much Marco really has left in him, while Milkins has had a slightly easier ride so far putting him at a mental advantage.
The quarter-final line-up really is looking like a strong one and I'd say that at least 3 of those 4 games have potential to go the full distance tomorrow as the players battle away for places in the best-of-17 frame semi-finals and I'm sure it'll make for very entertaining snooker over the next 4 days.
Tuesday, 28 October 2014
Day of the underdog as Murphy, Robertson, Trump and Hawkins all crash out
It was a bad day for the seeds at the International Championship as the likes of Neil Robertson, Barry Hawkins, Shaun Murphy, Judd Trump, Mark Davis and Joe Perry were all knocked out on a day that has opened up the draw massively. Marco Fu and Ricky Walden did managed to scrape through in deciders while Mark Allen came back from 3-0 down to beat Martin Gould 6-4, while things were more comfortable for Stuart Bingham and Ronnie O'Sullivan on a day where 6 of the 16 matches went the full 11 frames.
Last 32 Results:
Michael White 6-4 Mitchell Mann
Ian Burns 6-3 Craig Steadman
Stuart Bingham 6-3 Ryan Day
Mark Allen 6-4 Martin Gould
Mark Williams 6-2 Barry Hawkins
Sam Baird 6-5 Mark Davis
Li Hang 6-1 Zhao Xintong
Ronnie O'Sullivan 6-1 Anthony McGill
Joe Swail 6-5 Neil Robertson
Ricky Walden 6-5 Zhou Yuelong
Peter Ebdon 6-1 Joe Perry
Jamie Burnett 6-5 Judd Trump
Robert Milkins 6-1 Shaun Murphy
Xiao Guodong 6-5 Noppon Saengkham
Marco Fu 6-5 David Gilbert
Rod Lawler 6-1 Fergal O'Brien
I thought the draw was open after the Last 64, but todays results have really opened it up and left the tournament anyone's for the taking if someone steps up and finds top form for the rest of the week.
Here's how things look for the Last 16 then, with my thoughts on how the matches could go as always.
Last 16 Draw: (Picks in bold)
Michael White Vs Ian Burns - Both of these two players seem to be in really good form this week with them both having two very good wins and scoring well. Today Ian overcame Craig Steadman with plenty of breaks over 50 to throw into the mix and he'll be full of confidence coming into this game. Michael White meanwhile is on a very good run and looking for a win here to make it consecutive quarter-finals in Asian ranking events with that run to the Bulgarian Open semi-finals wedged nicely in between. When you get to the latter stages of tournaments and you're involved in tight matches which this one may well be, it's all about who has the extra gear and that extra bit of quality to get over the line and I'm certain that based on both talent and current form Michael White is that man, and I expect him to make it into Thursday's quarter-finals with a win here.
Mark Allen Vs Stuart Bingham - In a repeat of the Shanghai Masters final we have two men that are still very much in the good form that got them to that occasion just over a month ago. Mark Allen had to fight harder today than he did in the first round, coming back from 3-0 down to get over the line with a 6-4 victory against a player in Martin Gould who really didn't have to do much wrong, and that's the sign of a man in really good form. Stuart meanwhile is still in the form that saw him thump Allen that day 10-3 and win the Haining Open Asian Tour event last week. Today he beat another in form man Ryan Day quite comfortably 6-3 and he's full of confidence after all of the wins and big performances he's had in China in the last couple of months. We've the form Stuart's in, especially in China at the moment and the confidence he'll have that he can go really far this week I have to make Stuart the slight favourite here.
Mark Williams Vs Sam Baird - I've been impressed with how Mark Williams has played so far this week in only losing 3 frames in 2 matches against Oli Brown and Barry Hawkins, playing with a very good rhythm when making breaks and looking determined to do well this week, and with the scoring he's shown so far there is no doubt he's a massive favourite to make the quarter-finals and a dark horse to go well beyond that. Sam Baird had a very impressive win in the early session today against Mark Davis winning that one 6-5 in a match Mark really should've killed off. Williams will not have the same problem killing the match off when he gets in position as he displayed against Hawkins and his determination is not just there for show. If Mark continues in that vain, I can only see one outcome of this match.
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs Li Hang - After a slow start against Ben Woollaston it seems that Ronnie O'Sullivan has clicked into gear nicely and scoring at his exceptional best, and with players going out and Ronnie close to his best he is the new firm tournament favourite. His 6-1 win today against Anthony McGill was superb with 3 centuries in there and he certainly punished McGill if he didn't take the slim chances that he left for the Scot. Li Hang has started the week well with a very good display in beating John Higgins 6-1, before beating Zhao Xintong 6-1 today, although without the same size of breaks. The key for Hang tomorrow will be winning frames in one visit and trying to heap as much pressure on Ronnie as he can do. Without any disrespect to Li, with Ronnie playing how he did today, anything close to a repeat of that will be sending the Chinaman packing.
Ricky Walden Vs Joe Swail - These two fellas both came through deciding frames against two players at either end of the rankings. Starting with Ricky, he had to battle hard again in order to see off Zhou Yuelong and he certainly didn't have things easy and that could play a big part tomorrow as he played in the later session. Joe meanwhile will be riding on the crest of a wave having won 2 matches at the venue, including a win today against Neil Robertson (who at the time was the highest remaining seed) from 3-0 and 5-3 down. Swail is one of the hardest battlers on tour and he will make life incredibly tough for every single player in the draw if he can execute his skills, something he has been doing this week so far. I was impressed with how well he was striking the ball today and his long potting particularly was of a top standard. Coupled with the new care-free attitude he says he's playing with Joe Swail is a tough man for any player to face.
Peter Ebdon Vs Jamie Burnett - Peter Ebdon was my tip to be a big dark horse in this event, and with Neil Robertson and Judd Trump, his main threats in this quarter, on their way home Peter is my new favourite for this quarter. He's in incredibly good form as he showed again with another 6-1 victory against Joe Perry this time around and recent record in China is one that always makes him dangerous out there as he will be this week. If he's looking at the draw the same way I am, I'm pretty certain he'll be spotting a big opportunity to progress and that will make him determined to take that opportunity, and when Peter's determined that's when he's at his best and most dangerous. Jamie Burnett however may have beaten Judd Trump today, but that match was a big slog late into the evening in Chengdu while Peter Ebdon used up very little energy in the a comfortable match in the afternoon session which gives him a big advantage there too. Jamie didn't look at all comfortable at times today and it seemed like every pot was becoming a big battle at the end of the match, and it was becoming painful to watch at times, while Peter Ebdon is a slow player but also a very fluent one within his own cue action, especially when he's in the brilliant form he is at the moment. Can only see one outcome in this match as well.
Robert Milkins Vs Xiao Guodong - Robert Milkins produced a fine display of snooker today in beating Shaun Murphy 6-1, with some good breaks in taking a 3-0 lead, and some good steals in the fifth and sixth frames after Shaun kept throwing him lifelines in frames it seems. Robert will be the first to admit that he's not had the best 2014 on tour, but this win will be a big confidence boost going into the rest of this tournament starting in tomorrow's last 16 but also for the rest of the season. Xiao Guodong though is a very dangerous player to play against and although he hasn't had the most fluent start to the week here his scoring has still been good and the tough matches he's had will sharpen him up nicely for the business end of the tournament and I think he'll be able to match Robert in the scoring department. This game could simply depend on who gets in first in frames and who gets the most chances. It could depend a lot on Robert who is a very attacking player, when that comes off he'll win a lot more than he loses, but if it doesn't he's going to leave Xiao a lot more chances than he can afford to.
Marco Fu Vs Rod Lawler - Finally, we have Marco Fu who seems to be playing himself in to some form having made 4 centuries in 2 matches so far, despite both of those matches against Liam Highfield and David Gilbert running close. Marco takes on Rod Lawler who seems to be having one of his weeks where everything comes together and he puts together some very impressive results, as he has done against in form Oli Lines and consistent Fergal O'Brien. Noticeably from the frame scores Rod has been scoring really well which is a very good indicator of how far he can push Fu tomorrow, because Lawler can't rely on being able to grind results out against the best players, but it doesn't look like he's had to thus far. However, if Fu has found his form he's a tough man to beat and I don't think that Rod will be able to get over the line in this one, though I do expect it to be very close.
As I say the draw has well and truly opened up for an underdog to come through if one can really step up to the plate and I think we could have a winner come from outside of the top 16. With all of the shocks and surprise results we've seen this week so far it's going to be a very entertaining Last 16 in store tomorrow and I don't think things will go as I've predicted by any means.
Last 32 Results:
Michael White 6-4 Mitchell Mann
Ian Burns 6-3 Craig Steadman
Stuart Bingham 6-3 Ryan Day
Mark Allen 6-4 Martin Gould
Mark Williams 6-2 Barry Hawkins
Sam Baird 6-5 Mark Davis
Li Hang 6-1 Zhao Xintong
Ronnie O'Sullivan 6-1 Anthony McGill
Joe Swail 6-5 Neil Robertson
Ricky Walden 6-5 Zhou Yuelong
Peter Ebdon 6-1 Joe Perry
Jamie Burnett 6-5 Judd Trump
Robert Milkins 6-1 Shaun Murphy
Xiao Guodong 6-5 Noppon Saengkham
Marco Fu 6-5 David Gilbert
Rod Lawler 6-1 Fergal O'Brien
I thought the draw was open after the Last 64, but todays results have really opened it up and left the tournament anyone's for the taking if someone steps up and finds top form for the rest of the week.
Here's how things look for the Last 16 then, with my thoughts on how the matches could go as always.
Last 16 Draw: (Picks in bold)
Michael White Vs Ian Burns - Both of these two players seem to be in really good form this week with them both having two very good wins and scoring well. Today Ian overcame Craig Steadman with plenty of breaks over 50 to throw into the mix and he'll be full of confidence coming into this game. Michael White meanwhile is on a very good run and looking for a win here to make it consecutive quarter-finals in Asian ranking events with that run to the Bulgarian Open semi-finals wedged nicely in between. When you get to the latter stages of tournaments and you're involved in tight matches which this one may well be, it's all about who has the extra gear and that extra bit of quality to get over the line and I'm certain that based on both talent and current form Michael White is that man, and I expect him to make it into Thursday's quarter-finals with a win here.
Mark Allen Vs Stuart Bingham - In a repeat of the Shanghai Masters final we have two men that are still very much in the good form that got them to that occasion just over a month ago. Mark Allen had to fight harder today than he did in the first round, coming back from 3-0 down to get over the line with a 6-4 victory against a player in Martin Gould who really didn't have to do much wrong, and that's the sign of a man in really good form. Stuart meanwhile is still in the form that saw him thump Allen that day 10-3 and win the Haining Open Asian Tour event last week. Today he beat another in form man Ryan Day quite comfortably 6-3 and he's full of confidence after all of the wins and big performances he's had in China in the last couple of months. We've the form Stuart's in, especially in China at the moment and the confidence he'll have that he can go really far this week I have to make Stuart the slight favourite here.
Mark Williams Vs Sam Baird - I've been impressed with how Mark Williams has played so far this week in only losing 3 frames in 2 matches against Oli Brown and Barry Hawkins, playing with a very good rhythm when making breaks and looking determined to do well this week, and with the scoring he's shown so far there is no doubt he's a massive favourite to make the quarter-finals and a dark horse to go well beyond that. Sam Baird had a very impressive win in the early session today against Mark Davis winning that one 6-5 in a match Mark really should've killed off. Williams will not have the same problem killing the match off when he gets in position as he displayed against Hawkins and his determination is not just there for show. If Mark continues in that vain, I can only see one outcome of this match.
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs Li Hang - After a slow start against Ben Woollaston it seems that Ronnie O'Sullivan has clicked into gear nicely and scoring at his exceptional best, and with players going out and Ronnie close to his best he is the new firm tournament favourite. His 6-1 win today against Anthony McGill was superb with 3 centuries in there and he certainly punished McGill if he didn't take the slim chances that he left for the Scot. Li Hang has started the week well with a very good display in beating John Higgins 6-1, before beating Zhao Xintong 6-1 today, although without the same size of breaks. The key for Hang tomorrow will be winning frames in one visit and trying to heap as much pressure on Ronnie as he can do. Without any disrespect to Li, with Ronnie playing how he did today, anything close to a repeat of that will be sending the Chinaman packing.
Ricky Walden Vs Joe Swail - These two fellas both came through deciding frames against two players at either end of the rankings. Starting with Ricky, he had to battle hard again in order to see off Zhou Yuelong and he certainly didn't have things easy and that could play a big part tomorrow as he played in the later session. Joe meanwhile will be riding on the crest of a wave having won 2 matches at the venue, including a win today against Neil Robertson (who at the time was the highest remaining seed) from 3-0 and 5-3 down. Swail is one of the hardest battlers on tour and he will make life incredibly tough for every single player in the draw if he can execute his skills, something he has been doing this week so far. I was impressed with how well he was striking the ball today and his long potting particularly was of a top standard. Coupled with the new care-free attitude he says he's playing with Joe Swail is a tough man for any player to face.
Peter Ebdon Vs Jamie Burnett - Peter Ebdon was my tip to be a big dark horse in this event, and with Neil Robertson and Judd Trump, his main threats in this quarter, on their way home Peter is my new favourite for this quarter. He's in incredibly good form as he showed again with another 6-1 victory against Joe Perry this time around and recent record in China is one that always makes him dangerous out there as he will be this week. If he's looking at the draw the same way I am, I'm pretty certain he'll be spotting a big opportunity to progress and that will make him determined to take that opportunity, and when Peter's determined that's when he's at his best and most dangerous. Jamie Burnett however may have beaten Judd Trump today, but that match was a big slog late into the evening in Chengdu while Peter Ebdon used up very little energy in the a comfortable match in the afternoon session which gives him a big advantage there too. Jamie didn't look at all comfortable at times today and it seemed like every pot was becoming a big battle at the end of the match, and it was becoming painful to watch at times, while Peter Ebdon is a slow player but also a very fluent one within his own cue action, especially when he's in the brilliant form he is at the moment. Can only see one outcome in this match as well.
Robert Milkins Vs Xiao Guodong - Robert Milkins produced a fine display of snooker today in beating Shaun Murphy 6-1, with some good breaks in taking a 3-0 lead, and some good steals in the fifth and sixth frames after Shaun kept throwing him lifelines in frames it seems. Robert will be the first to admit that he's not had the best 2014 on tour, but this win will be a big confidence boost going into the rest of this tournament starting in tomorrow's last 16 but also for the rest of the season. Xiao Guodong though is a very dangerous player to play against and although he hasn't had the most fluent start to the week here his scoring has still been good and the tough matches he's had will sharpen him up nicely for the business end of the tournament and I think he'll be able to match Robert in the scoring department. This game could simply depend on who gets in first in frames and who gets the most chances. It could depend a lot on Robert who is a very attacking player, when that comes off he'll win a lot more than he loses, but if it doesn't he's going to leave Xiao a lot more chances than he can afford to.
Marco Fu Vs Rod Lawler - Finally, we have Marco Fu who seems to be playing himself in to some form having made 4 centuries in 2 matches so far, despite both of those matches against Liam Highfield and David Gilbert running close. Marco takes on Rod Lawler who seems to be having one of his weeks where everything comes together and he puts together some very impressive results, as he has done against in form Oli Lines and consistent Fergal O'Brien. Noticeably from the frame scores Rod has been scoring really well which is a very good indicator of how far he can push Fu tomorrow, because Lawler can't rely on being able to grind results out against the best players, but it doesn't look like he's had to thus far. However, if Fu has found his form he's a tough man to beat and I don't think that Rod will be able to get over the line in this one, though I do expect it to be very close.
As I say the draw has well and truly opened up for an underdog to come through if one can really step up to the plate and I think we could have a winner come from outside of the top 16. With all of the shocks and surprise results we've seen this week so far it's going to be a very entertaining Last 16 in store tomorrow and I don't think things will go as I've predicted by any means.
Monday, 27 October 2014
Down to the Last 32 in Chengdu
After 2 days of tasty action at the International Championship in Chengdu the Last 64 has been completed and tomorrow sees all of the Last 32 games across the 3 sessions. The main casualties of the opening round were Graeme Dott, Dominic Dale, John Higgins, Kurt Maflin, Matthew Stevens and Stephen Maguire. Meanwhile the usual suspects in Neil Robertson and Shaun Murphy got through comfortably while Judd Trump came through a decider against Jimmy Robertson and Ronnie O'Sullivan turned over a 3-1 deficit to beat Ben Woollaston 6-4. Marco Fu and Joe Perry also overturned sizeable deficits to win their games against Liam Highfield and Mike Dunn respectively.
Here are the Last 64 results in full so you can see how your favourites went:
Last 64 Results:
Mitchell Mann 6-5 Wang Zepeng
Michael White 6-0 Aditya Mehta
Ian Burns 6-5 Dominic Dale
Craig Steadman 6-1 Graeme Dott
Stuart Bingham 6-4 Robbie Williams
Ryan Day 6-5 Mark Joyce
Martin Gould 6-4 Joel Walker
Mark Allen 6-0 Nigel Bond
Barry Hawkins 6-4 Jimmy White
Mark Williams 6-1 Oli Brown
Sam Baird 6-2 Kyren Wilson
Mark Davis 6-2 Dechawat Poomjaeng
Li Hang 6-1 John Higgins
Zhao Xintong 6-3 Kurt Maflin
Anthony McGill 6-4 Alan McManus
Ronnie O'Sullivan 6-4 Ben Woollaston
Neil Robertson 6-3 Matt Selt
Joe Swail 6-2 Andrew Higginson
Zhou Yuelong 6-1 Chris Melling
Ricky Walden 6-3 David Morris
Joe Perry 6-3 Mike Dunn
Peter Ebdon 6-1 Andrew Pagett
Jamie Burnett 6-1 Matthew Stevens
Judd Trump 6-5 Jimmy Robertson
Shaun Murphy 6-1 Yu De Lu
Robert Milkins 6-2 Barry Pinches
Xiao Guodong 6-2 Eden Sharav
Noppon Saengkham 6-5 Stephen Maguire
Marco Fu 6-4 Liam Highfield
David Gilbert 6-4 Zak Surety
Fergal O'Brien 6-5 Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
Rod Lawler 6-3 Oli Lines
So, a few results in there have opened the draw up a little bit ahead of the Last 32 with a few top players falling in qualifying and in the Last 64 there are chances now for guys down the rankings to go a long way in this event.
Now it's time for me to take a look at the Last 32 draw and have my thoughts on what I think some of the outcomes could be of tomorrow's games.
Last 32 Draw: (Picks in bold)
Michael White Vs Mitchell Mann - To start off the Last 32 we have 2 very good young players that are both climbing up the rankings at the different stages of their career. Mann had to come through a wildcard before making a 142 on the way to beating Wang Zepeng in today's Last 64. Mitchell is a top class young player from what I've seen and heard but he doesn't necessarily have much tour experience yet having only been on tour half a season which puts him at a slight disadvantage, especially in Chinese conditions. Michael White however is in cracking form having beaten Mehta 6-0 to start the week and he did have a very good run in Shanghai to the quarter-finals in September as well as making the semi-finals in Bulgaria earlier this month. If White continues like that there's only one winner here.
Ian Burns Vs Craig Steadman - Ian Burns and Craig Steadman are very evenly matched in my opinion and this is a match that could quite easily go either way tomorrow and could be decided by one decisive frame at a key point of the match. Craig Steadman I would say has been the marginally better of the two in the last 12 months and his win in round one proved that, not to just beat former world champion Graeme Dott, but to batter him 6-1. Ian also had a good victory against Dominic Dale on Sunday but it doesn't seem as though he played perhaps as well as Steadman did, and I'd say that Steadman is probably the better of the two players in Chinese conditions, which will play as big a part this week as any other Chinese ranking event.
Stuart Bingham Vs Ryan Day - I'm not always one for predicting correct scores particularly well (or even outcomes for that matter) but I certainly believe that this match is going to go a fair distance, being won 6-4 or 6-5 either way. Both guys are playing well at the moment with Ryan having a 147 on the way to the Asian Tour quarters last week, and he's certainly got his big scoring boots back on of late as he showed again in his 6-5 win over Mark Joyce on Sunday. Ryan is consistently putting in good performances in now, and wins in matches like this are ones that will soon have him back in the top 16 of the rankings. After the last couple of months for Stuart with wins at the Shanghai Masters and the AT2 event last week, those 2 titles added to his account have put him in a good place for another good run this week if he continues playing as he is. He started slow against Robbie Williams, coming from 4-3 down to win 6-4 but he does seem to start slower in the Chinese ranking events, improving as the week goes on if he can stay in the event. It's going to be tight, but I have a feeling that Stuart will come from behind and move into the Last 16.
Mark Allen Vs Martin Gould - Another very close match is in prospect here as Mark Allen, winner of the Paul Hunter Classic and runner-up at the Shanghai Masters this season, takes on Martin Gould who is climbing back up the rankings thanks to a good run in Wuxi and a run to the final of the Bulgarian Open. Mark started his week off in a very convincing style with a 6-0 win over Nigel Bond, while Martin Gould had a slightly tougher time against Joel Walker, taking the final 2 frames there to win 6-4. Over a longer format though I just fancy Martin Gould slightly less because his record in shorter format events like PTC's is much better than full ranking events, whereas Mark Allen is a proving ranking event winner and has potential to win one of the games very biggest events very soon, and that just gives him an edge in games like this which is all either player will want in a game like this.
Barry Hawkins Vs Mark Williams - This is a repeat of a recent Last 32 match at the Shanghai Masters last month, which saw Mark Williams win 5-4 in a match that certainly went right down to the wire. Mark Williams has been playing a little better just lately and I think that could be testament to the fact that he has been working hard on and off the table, with a new cue in hand for this season and the absence of a few pounds after some work on his fitness, which a lot of players have been doing recently and in most cases it's led to improvements in their form. (Not to try and put 2 and 2 together). Barry Hawkins though seems to be suffering a little bit from early season blues that troubled him at the beginning of last season. He's hardly in terrible form but his form is also not to the standard we've seen in the second half of the last couple of seasons with his good runs in the last 2 World Championships being his main source of ranking money. Like their Shanghai match I think this is going down to the wire, but i'll give the Welshman the edge that will be needed to win.
Mark Davis Vs Sam Baird - Mark Davis is in some ways twice the player in Asia that he is in the UK and I think with the conditions being a lot poorer in China this week for playing snooker, that will suit Davis more than Baird who relies heavily on getting into a good rhythm. Sam did have a good win 6-2 over Kyren Wilson and he played very well in that match too looking at the breaks. Davis had a good 6-2 win also against Poomjaeng and his extra experience could tell in a match that I think Sam will push close if he plays as he did in the Last 64. Either way though, I fully expect Mark to come through this one.
Li Hang Vs Zhao Xintong - This match should be a very good match between 2 very classy young Chinamen who have had some very good wins to progress to this stage. Li Hang's 6-1 win over John Higgins is a result that massively stands out from the Last 64 and I had a feeling that he would win that one, and I'm disappointed not to have made that call. Zhao Xintong is a young man that has a very bright future ahead of him. With the results he's had as a wildcard in the last year, I've gotten to the stage now I'm ignoring the fact that he has won. This week Jamie Jones and Kurt Maflin have been the 2 men unfortunate enough to come up against him and get the Xintong treatment and as a pro playing an amateur that's always hard to take and because of the nature of the game, Zhao's opponents will be putting themselves under a lot of pressure to win before the game has even begun. He is a classy player though and results at last years International brought that to the attention of everyone in Snooker and it would be very good for him to repeat that performance with a victory tomorrow.
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs Anthony McGill - Ronnie O'Sullivan struggled a lot in the early stages of his match against Ben Woollaston. I think he was a little bit too relaxed and came across to many watching as care free throughout the match, and although he started to make some big breaks in the second half of that 6-4 win, he needs to change his mentality in order to raise his game ready for what will be another strong test tomorrow against McGill. Anthony played very well looking at the breaks in order to overcome in form Alan McManus to get into the Last 32. These two players met at this event in the Last 64 last season and Ronnie won quite convincingly on that occasion but only because the Scot failed to take his chances. If McGill gets as many chances as he did that day and as Ronnie gave to Ben on Sunday, he certainly has a very good chance, but I expect Ronnie to sharpen up now he's got past that dodgy opening round fixture.
Neil Robertson Vs Joe Swail - As we enter the bottom half of the draw we have the world number 2 taking on Northern Irishman Joe Swail in what will be another tricky contest for the big Australian. Neil had a tough match today against Matt Selt who was very well in making keeping him to 3-3 having lost the first 2 frames to Robertson. However, Neil found that extra gear that sets him apart from the majority and that powered him on to a 6-3 win. Joe is a very dangerous player and he'll be full of confidence after beating Andrew Higginson 6-2 earlier on today but if he does push Neil Robertson close, I expect Neil to find that extra gear again that will get him into the Last 16.
Ricky Walden Vs Zhou Yuelong - Ricky Walden had to dig in earlier after going 2-0 down to David Morris in the Last 64, but he seemed to find his form from there and he made 2 centuries on the way to winning 6 of the next 7 frames to power into the Last 32. He certainly has the wood on Zhou Yuelong in terms of experience and that could play the vital part in this match. Zhou may have had a convincing win against Chris Melling today 6-1 but I can't see past Ricky for the win here.
Joe Perry Vs Peter Ebdon - This has all the makings of a very tense and close match (and with Ebdon a lengthy one too). Joe today overcame Mike Dunn who played well to lead that match 3-0 early doors, but Joe soon found his form and won all of the next 6 frames to win that one 6-3. Peter Ebdon though is in very good form after his showings in the last European and Asian Tour events to reach the semi and quarter-finals of those 2 respectively and he had a very easy match in the morning session over Andrew Pagett taking that one 6-1 and I fully expect Peter to have a very good run this week out in Chengdu after his runs in the last 2 years. Joe is a very tough player to beat, but they don't come much tougher to beat than Peter Ebdon. That may have changed a bit in recent years but when Ebdon is on his game as he is at the moment I wouldn't want to face him.
Judd Trump Vs Jamie Burnett - At first glance I can only see this game going one way and that is comfortably the way of Judd Trump. However, having looked back at todays results Jamie's 6-1 win against Matthew Stevens is a very convincing one against a fairly solid player (even if Matt has hit a downwards turn in the last year or 2). Judd on the other hand had a tough time of things against Jimmy Robertson, losing 3 frames from 2-0 up to trail 3-2, at which stage he was becoming increasingly frustrated, before winning the next 3 to go 5-3 in front only for Jimmy to force a decider, but those efforts were in vain as Judd took the match 6-5. It's tough for me to see past Judd in this encounter though.
Shaun Murphy Vs Robert Milkins - Shaun Murphy is in incredible form at the moment having won 3 titles in 2014, one of which was this month as well as reaching the final of the invitational General Cup. He continued this form today against Yu De Lu, who may have made a few mistakes, but Murphy continued his renaissance of the attacking snooker he was known for in his early career and had some very good breaks in there. Robert Milkins also had a good win against Barry Pinches 6-2 in what have been tough conditions this week at times with the atmospherics not being great for snooker playing. Robert and Shaun always have good games, and while the head to head may favour Shaun a touch, their games are always close and I'm sure this one will be too. With the form he's in though, I'd find it hard to tip against Murphy against most players.
Xiao Guodong Vs Noppon Saengkham - In this encounter, Xiao Guodong will be a clear favourite with his continued progress in the rankings as he becomes a more consistent player. His win today against Eden Sharav 6-2 came from a position of 2-2 at the interval and shows just what the Chinaman is capable of in reeling off a series of frames in quick succession and that is the big danger for Noppon Saengkham tomorrow. Noppon was very lucky to get through today against Stephen Maguire and Stephen will be wondering how exactly he lost that match. Stephen made all of the big contributions in the match and Noppon was just able to hang in there and take advantage when his chance came right at the very end. I don't think though that if Xiao gets in front in frames and in the match as a whole tomorrow that he'll leave the door open for Noppon, such is his clinical nature shown today.
Marco Fu Vs David Gilbert - This match is quite a tough one to call tomorrow with neither player playing particularly well today as both players could've been on their way home at this point. Marco trailed Liam Highfield 4-2 at one stage having led 2-0 before coming back to win 6-4 but in the latter parts of the game he seemed frustrated sat in the chair and his body language didn't look great with his shoulders slumped at times like a man that had given up. Against a more experienced pro he'd have been beaten. The same goes for Gilbert who seemed to struggle early on against Surety before winning 6-4. Neither player has had a particularly good season to this point, with both struggling for the ability they have, but the winner tomorrow could see this moment as the one where they kick start their season. Marco is certainly the most likely candidate on that front.
Fergal O'Brien Vs Rod Lawler - The place to start with this match is not by pointing out the obvious (how long the match could be) but by going back 12 months to when these 2 played each other at the same stage of this very event. On that day Fergal O'Brien took the spoils 6-4. Fergal played well today against Thepchaiya Un-Nooh to come back from 3-1 and 5-4 down to win 6-5 with a century in the tenth frame and another very good break in the decider. Rod did what he always seems to do today and find a way of winning games that on paper you think are close but don't expect him to come through beating Oli Lines 6-3 and a performance of a similar level tomorrow will see him take this match very close. Fergal in my mind is a big favourite with the way he's been playing in the last few months, ever since his appearance in the Gdynia Open final. I fully expect the Irishman to take the same spoils that he did 12 months ago.
There looks like some very good games there for tomorrow and it should make for some very good watching on the TV or streams wherever you are. I'm sure there will be more big performances from some of these youngsters, while the top players will try and keep warming up to peak at the vital times in this tournament.
Here are the Last 64 results in full so you can see how your favourites went:
Last 64 Results:
Mitchell Mann 6-5 Wang Zepeng
Michael White 6-0 Aditya Mehta
Ian Burns 6-5 Dominic Dale
Craig Steadman 6-1 Graeme Dott
Stuart Bingham 6-4 Robbie Williams
Ryan Day 6-5 Mark Joyce
Martin Gould 6-4 Joel Walker
Mark Allen 6-0 Nigel Bond
Barry Hawkins 6-4 Jimmy White
Mark Williams 6-1 Oli Brown
Sam Baird 6-2 Kyren Wilson
Mark Davis 6-2 Dechawat Poomjaeng
Li Hang 6-1 John Higgins
Zhao Xintong 6-3 Kurt Maflin
Anthony McGill 6-4 Alan McManus
Ronnie O'Sullivan 6-4 Ben Woollaston
Neil Robertson 6-3 Matt Selt
Joe Swail 6-2 Andrew Higginson
Zhou Yuelong 6-1 Chris Melling
Ricky Walden 6-3 David Morris
Joe Perry 6-3 Mike Dunn
Peter Ebdon 6-1 Andrew Pagett
Jamie Burnett 6-1 Matthew Stevens
Judd Trump 6-5 Jimmy Robertson
Shaun Murphy 6-1 Yu De Lu
Robert Milkins 6-2 Barry Pinches
Xiao Guodong 6-2 Eden Sharav
Noppon Saengkham 6-5 Stephen Maguire
Marco Fu 6-4 Liam Highfield
David Gilbert 6-4 Zak Surety
Fergal O'Brien 6-5 Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
Rod Lawler 6-3 Oli Lines
So, a few results in there have opened the draw up a little bit ahead of the Last 32 with a few top players falling in qualifying and in the Last 64 there are chances now for guys down the rankings to go a long way in this event.
Now it's time for me to take a look at the Last 32 draw and have my thoughts on what I think some of the outcomes could be of tomorrow's games.
Last 32 Draw: (Picks in bold)
Michael White Vs Mitchell Mann - To start off the Last 32 we have 2 very good young players that are both climbing up the rankings at the different stages of their career. Mann had to come through a wildcard before making a 142 on the way to beating Wang Zepeng in today's Last 64. Mitchell is a top class young player from what I've seen and heard but he doesn't necessarily have much tour experience yet having only been on tour half a season which puts him at a slight disadvantage, especially in Chinese conditions. Michael White however is in cracking form having beaten Mehta 6-0 to start the week and he did have a very good run in Shanghai to the quarter-finals in September as well as making the semi-finals in Bulgaria earlier this month. If White continues like that there's only one winner here.
Ian Burns Vs Craig Steadman - Ian Burns and Craig Steadman are very evenly matched in my opinion and this is a match that could quite easily go either way tomorrow and could be decided by one decisive frame at a key point of the match. Craig Steadman I would say has been the marginally better of the two in the last 12 months and his win in round one proved that, not to just beat former world champion Graeme Dott, but to batter him 6-1. Ian also had a good victory against Dominic Dale on Sunday but it doesn't seem as though he played perhaps as well as Steadman did, and I'd say that Steadman is probably the better of the two players in Chinese conditions, which will play as big a part this week as any other Chinese ranking event.
Stuart Bingham Vs Ryan Day - I'm not always one for predicting correct scores particularly well (or even outcomes for that matter) but I certainly believe that this match is going to go a fair distance, being won 6-4 or 6-5 either way. Both guys are playing well at the moment with Ryan having a 147 on the way to the Asian Tour quarters last week, and he's certainly got his big scoring boots back on of late as he showed again in his 6-5 win over Mark Joyce on Sunday. Ryan is consistently putting in good performances in now, and wins in matches like this are ones that will soon have him back in the top 16 of the rankings. After the last couple of months for Stuart with wins at the Shanghai Masters and the AT2 event last week, those 2 titles added to his account have put him in a good place for another good run this week if he continues playing as he is. He started slow against Robbie Williams, coming from 4-3 down to win 6-4 but he does seem to start slower in the Chinese ranking events, improving as the week goes on if he can stay in the event. It's going to be tight, but I have a feeling that Stuart will come from behind and move into the Last 16.
Mark Allen Vs Martin Gould - Another very close match is in prospect here as Mark Allen, winner of the Paul Hunter Classic and runner-up at the Shanghai Masters this season, takes on Martin Gould who is climbing back up the rankings thanks to a good run in Wuxi and a run to the final of the Bulgarian Open. Mark started his week off in a very convincing style with a 6-0 win over Nigel Bond, while Martin Gould had a slightly tougher time against Joel Walker, taking the final 2 frames there to win 6-4. Over a longer format though I just fancy Martin Gould slightly less because his record in shorter format events like PTC's is much better than full ranking events, whereas Mark Allen is a proving ranking event winner and has potential to win one of the games very biggest events very soon, and that just gives him an edge in games like this which is all either player will want in a game like this.
Barry Hawkins Vs Mark Williams - This is a repeat of a recent Last 32 match at the Shanghai Masters last month, which saw Mark Williams win 5-4 in a match that certainly went right down to the wire. Mark Williams has been playing a little better just lately and I think that could be testament to the fact that he has been working hard on and off the table, with a new cue in hand for this season and the absence of a few pounds after some work on his fitness, which a lot of players have been doing recently and in most cases it's led to improvements in their form. (Not to try and put 2 and 2 together). Barry Hawkins though seems to be suffering a little bit from early season blues that troubled him at the beginning of last season. He's hardly in terrible form but his form is also not to the standard we've seen in the second half of the last couple of seasons with his good runs in the last 2 World Championships being his main source of ranking money. Like their Shanghai match I think this is going down to the wire, but i'll give the Welshman the edge that will be needed to win.
Mark Davis Vs Sam Baird - Mark Davis is in some ways twice the player in Asia that he is in the UK and I think with the conditions being a lot poorer in China this week for playing snooker, that will suit Davis more than Baird who relies heavily on getting into a good rhythm. Sam did have a good win 6-2 over Kyren Wilson and he played very well in that match too looking at the breaks. Davis had a good 6-2 win also against Poomjaeng and his extra experience could tell in a match that I think Sam will push close if he plays as he did in the Last 64. Either way though, I fully expect Mark to come through this one.
Li Hang Vs Zhao Xintong - This match should be a very good match between 2 very classy young Chinamen who have had some very good wins to progress to this stage. Li Hang's 6-1 win over John Higgins is a result that massively stands out from the Last 64 and I had a feeling that he would win that one, and I'm disappointed not to have made that call. Zhao Xintong is a young man that has a very bright future ahead of him. With the results he's had as a wildcard in the last year, I've gotten to the stage now I'm ignoring the fact that he has won. This week Jamie Jones and Kurt Maflin have been the 2 men unfortunate enough to come up against him and get the Xintong treatment and as a pro playing an amateur that's always hard to take and because of the nature of the game, Zhao's opponents will be putting themselves under a lot of pressure to win before the game has even begun. He is a classy player though and results at last years International brought that to the attention of everyone in Snooker and it would be very good for him to repeat that performance with a victory tomorrow.
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs Anthony McGill - Ronnie O'Sullivan struggled a lot in the early stages of his match against Ben Woollaston. I think he was a little bit too relaxed and came across to many watching as care free throughout the match, and although he started to make some big breaks in the second half of that 6-4 win, he needs to change his mentality in order to raise his game ready for what will be another strong test tomorrow against McGill. Anthony played very well looking at the breaks in order to overcome in form Alan McManus to get into the Last 32. These two players met at this event in the Last 64 last season and Ronnie won quite convincingly on that occasion but only because the Scot failed to take his chances. If McGill gets as many chances as he did that day and as Ronnie gave to Ben on Sunday, he certainly has a very good chance, but I expect Ronnie to sharpen up now he's got past that dodgy opening round fixture.
Neil Robertson Vs Joe Swail - As we enter the bottom half of the draw we have the world number 2 taking on Northern Irishman Joe Swail in what will be another tricky contest for the big Australian. Neil had a tough match today against Matt Selt who was very well in making keeping him to 3-3 having lost the first 2 frames to Robertson. However, Neil found that extra gear that sets him apart from the majority and that powered him on to a 6-3 win. Joe is a very dangerous player and he'll be full of confidence after beating Andrew Higginson 6-2 earlier on today but if he does push Neil Robertson close, I expect Neil to find that extra gear again that will get him into the Last 16.
Ricky Walden Vs Zhou Yuelong - Ricky Walden had to dig in earlier after going 2-0 down to David Morris in the Last 64, but he seemed to find his form from there and he made 2 centuries on the way to winning 6 of the next 7 frames to power into the Last 32. He certainly has the wood on Zhou Yuelong in terms of experience and that could play the vital part in this match. Zhou may have had a convincing win against Chris Melling today 6-1 but I can't see past Ricky for the win here.
Joe Perry Vs Peter Ebdon - This has all the makings of a very tense and close match (and with Ebdon a lengthy one too). Joe today overcame Mike Dunn who played well to lead that match 3-0 early doors, but Joe soon found his form and won all of the next 6 frames to win that one 6-3. Peter Ebdon though is in very good form after his showings in the last European and Asian Tour events to reach the semi and quarter-finals of those 2 respectively and he had a very easy match in the morning session over Andrew Pagett taking that one 6-1 and I fully expect Peter to have a very good run this week out in Chengdu after his runs in the last 2 years. Joe is a very tough player to beat, but they don't come much tougher to beat than Peter Ebdon. That may have changed a bit in recent years but when Ebdon is on his game as he is at the moment I wouldn't want to face him.
Judd Trump Vs Jamie Burnett - At first glance I can only see this game going one way and that is comfortably the way of Judd Trump. However, having looked back at todays results Jamie's 6-1 win against Matthew Stevens is a very convincing one against a fairly solid player (even if Matt has hit a downwards turn in the last year or 2). Judd on the other hand had a tough time of things against Jimmy Robertson, losing 3 frames from 2-0 up to trail 3-2, at which stage he was becoming increasingly frustrated, before winning the next 3 to go 5-3 in front only for Jimmy to force a decider, but those efforts were in vain as Judd took the match 6-5. It's tough for me to see past Judd in this encounter though.
Shaun Murphy Vs Robert Milkins - Shaun Murphy is in incredible form at the moment having won 3 titles in 2014, one of which was this month as well as reaching the final of the invitational General Cup. He continued this form today against Yu De Lu, who may have made a few mistakes, but Murphy continued his renaissance of the attacking snooker he was known for in his early career and had some very good breaks in there. Robert Milkins also had a good win against Barry Pinches 6-2 in what have been tough conditions this week at times with the atmospherics not being great for snooker playing. Robert and Shaun always have good games, and while the head to head may favour Shaun a touch, their games are always close and I'm sure this one will be too. With the form he's in though, I'd find it hard to tip against Murphy against most players.
Xiao Guodong Vs Noppon Saengkham - In this encounter, Xiao Guodong will be a clear favourite with his continued progress in the rankings as he becomes a more consistent player. His win today against Eden Sharav 6-2 came from a position of 2-2 at the interval and shows just what the Chinaman is capable of in reeling off a series of frames in quick succession and that is the big danger for Noppon Saengkham tomorrow. Noppon was very lucky to get through today against Stephen Maguire and Stephen will be wondering how exactly he lost that match. Stephen made all of the big contributions in the match and Noppon was just able to hang in there and take advantage when his chance came right at the very end. I don't think though that if Xiao gets in front in frames and in the match as a whole tomorrow that he'll leave the door open for Noppon, such is his clinical nature shown today.
Marco Fu Vs David Gilbert - This match is quite a tough one to call tomorrow with neither player playing particularly well today as both players could've been on their way home at this point. Marco trailed Liam Highfield 4-2 at one stage having led 2-0 before coming back to win 6-4 but in the latter parts of the game he seemed frustrated sat in the chair and his body language didn't look great with his shoulders slumped at times like a man that had given up. Against a more experienced pro he'd have been beaten. The same goes for Gilbert who seemed to struggle early on against Surety before winning 6-4. Neither player has had a particularly good season to this point, with both struggling for the ability they have, but the winner tomorrow could see this moment as the one where they kick start their season. Marco is certainly the most likely candidate on that front.
Fergal O'Brien Vs Rod Lawler - The place to start with this match is not by pointing out the obvious (how long the match could be) but by going back 12 months to when these 2 played each other at the same stage of this very event. On that day Fergal O'Brien took the spoils 6-4. Fergal played well today against Thepchaiya Un-Nooh to come back from 3-1 and 5-4 down to win 6-5 with a century in the tenth frame and another very good break in the decider. Rod did what he always seems to do today and find a way of winning games that on paper you think are close but don't expect him to come through beating Oli Lines 6-3 and a performance of a similar level tomorrow will see him take this match very close. Fergal in my mind is a big favourite with the way he's been playing in the last few months, ever since his appearance in the Gdynia Open final. I fully expect the Irishman to take the same spoils that he did 12 months ago.
There looks like some very good games there for tomorrow and it should make for some very good watching on the TV or streams wherever you are. I'm sure there will be more big performances from some of these youngsters, while the top players will try and keep warming up to peak at the vital times in this tournament.
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