Ashley Carty is one of the rookies on tour this season after earning his tour card in the final event of Q School this summer and was someone I picked straight out as a player to watch.
Now, after a steady start to the season, he steps up to the big time in his first major as a professional and his second appearance at the UK Championship overall hoping for a run that could kick his season up a gear.
With a first UK Championship as a pro comes a lot of new experiences and the great buzz of playing in the main arena at the York Barbican and Carty cannot wait to get underway on Wednesday night.
"I’m really excited as it is such a prestigious event and the first major BBC event of this season, I don’t have many UK Championship memories overall, apart from my appearance there a few years ago as an amateur", Carty exclaimed.
His first round opponent at the Barbican is David Gilbert, the world number 19 who has climbed back up to that mark after a start to the season that has him sixth on this season's money list and he comes to York after a quarter-final in Belfast.
"Gilbert is a great player, his rankings don't lie and he narrowly lost in the final in China (at the start of the season) which must have given him huge confidence. I know I’ll have to be at the top of my game to beat him, but I know if I play to the best of my ability I’m capable of the win".
As he's already mentioned, Carty does have one experience of playing in the main arena at the York Barbican, when he took on Barry Hawkins in the last 128 of this event as an amateur top-up player back in 2014.
"I lost 6-1 but it was a much closer game than the score line suggests, it was a great experience playing in the main room in the Barbican and it will hold me in good stead for Wednesday night".
Being a Yorkshire based player, Carty is one of many players who will not be far from home this week and he maybe able to use the recent success of other locals like David Grace (semi-finalist in 2015), Oliver Lines (last 16 in 2016) or Peter Lines (knocked out defending champion Neil Robertson in 2016) to inspire a big run.
"Yes definitely it’s only about a hour away for me so that will have it’s benefits of the reduced amount of travelling, which sometimes can take a lot out of you".
The other benefit of having so many players from the same area is that Carty is also never short of a practice partner.
"I have been up to the Northern Snooker Centre quite a few times to practice with Peter and Oliver Lines and also Sanderson Lam".
This season so far, Carty has had some tough defeats, most recently in deciders to Graeme Dott and Mark King in the last 128 of the International Championships and the English Open, each providing a lesson about life on tour.
"I have learnt that on the tour you have to be really critical when you get a chance otherwise with the quality of the tour you will get punished. I probably just need to be a bit more consistent and score heavily more often when I'm in which I am working on".
His best finish to date was a run to the last 32 of the Riga Masters, with an impressive victory against Anthony McGill which has given Carty plenty of belief.
"Against McGill I played a really good match and didn’t hardly put a foot wrong, that’s what you have to do to beat the top players. It just proves that I can beat the top players, and that is definitely the highlight of my season so far".
Earning a tour card via Q School is a unique experience, given the pressure that is on every single player in the latter stages of the events, so it takes a lot of bottle to come through and that is something Carty displayed in May.
"The whole experience of Q School is very stressful and very nerve wracking as there is a huge amount in your career at stake and especially in a shorter format over two weeks of the year it is really tough to come through it all".
The experience is may be a stressful one but the rewards are so great for getting over the line and for many players it takes a while to sink in and provides lifelong memories.
"To be honest it was all a bit of a blur. I was that focused in my matches that I don’t remember a lot apart from the last two matches where I beat a Chinese pro from last season (Wang Yuchen), and an Indian player who was at Q School for the first time , where I knew I had an advantage because I’ve lost twice previously in the last round of Q School and I didn’t want to go through that defeat again as it is heartbreaking. It took a few weeks to sink in but the season started only about a month after so I didn’t have too much time to enjoy it".
Having had the near misses, it must be tough for a player to block that out when they get close again, with the record of Jamie Clarke providing a prime example of that, but for Carty it made him more determined to succeed.
"As I previously said to lose in the last game to turn pro it is heartbreaking especially more as you get a little older. The previous defeats made me more motivated and focused to get the job done this time around".
Thanks to a near miss in the 2014 Q School, Carty was able to play in the 2014/2015 season as an amateur top-up, gaining valuable experience and having some success, reaching the last 32 in both the German Masters and the Welsh Open.
"I played in near enough every event that season which was a great experience, I beat Robert Milkins in the German qualifiers which was my best win to date at the time, then to beat Michael Holt and Alfie Burden in the Welsh, it definitely gave me some great confidence in myself and gave me valuable experience which I can use now that I’m on the tour".
Previously, the opportunities for amateurs to play had been criticised, but this season's introduction of the Challenge Tour is the first step to changing that.
"The Challenge Tour is definitely a great idea. Giving amateur players 10 events over the season against the other top amateurs will only improve the amateur game".
One thing that is mentioned quite often is the rate at which young Chinese players are coming through compared to young English players, and Carty has had his say on why that is.
"The Chinese younger players get a lot of government funding and top coaching - that’s the difference. The English lads don’t get any government funding or much national support and there are a lot of snooker clubs shutting down in England over the last few years".
At age 23 though, Carty is a young English player who has plenty of time on his side to potentially develop into a great player in the future, but for now he is keeping his goals fairly small and simple as he aims to climb up the ranking list.
"I just want to try and win as many games as I can and take every game as it comes, especially in the first round matches as you get no ranking points for losing first round games, I have had three last 32 appearances in my career so far including one this season so to go one better to get to a last 16 this season would be a great achievement. If I can go further than that, that would be amazing", Carty concluded.
As he says, the only way to creep up the ranking list is to start by winning first round matches, to ensure getting points on the board. A win over David Gilbert in the first round of the UK Championship on Wednesday 28 November at 7.30pm would be a huge boost to that goal and I would like to wish him all the best for his campaign in York.
Monday, 26 November 2018
Sunday, 25 November 2018
The Big UK Championship Preview
The first triple crown event of the season has finally arrived as 128 players are all set to descend on the York Barbican with the dream of winning one of the most prestigious titles in snooker and becoming UK Champion.
Ronnie O'Sullivan is the man to beat not just as the defending champion after his success against Shaun Murphy in last year's final, but also having made at least the semi-finals in all of the four events he has played in this season, winning two of them.
2011 champion Judd Trump is the most recent winner on tour though having defeated O'Sullivan to lift the Alex Higgins trophy last week in Belfast, while the ranking event prior to that was won by 2011 UK runner-up Mark Allen.
Mark Selby looked to be in form on the way to the semi-finals in Northern Ireland where he lost a classic to O'Sullivan and the two-time champion is also among the favourites to lift the UK title.
Struggling of late though are World champion Mark Williams and last year's losing Crucible finalist John Higgins while last year's UK runner-up Murphy is yet to really get out of the traps this season. The list of possible first time Triple Crown event winners is headed by Kyren Wilson who made the final of the recent Champion of Champions and Jack Lisowski who has motored up the rankings in the last 18 months.
It all makes for a potentially exciting tournament and it all starts on Tuesday with three days of last 128 action before the BBC cameras turn up for the start of the last 64 on Saturday.
Mark Williams has not been on the best run of form since winning the World Open in the summer. Since his run to the last 16 of the China Championship, that was ended abruptly by potential last 64 opponent Zhao Xintong, Williams has suffered a last 32 exit at the English Open and two last 64 exits and looked altogether out of sorts. At this event he has only achieved one quarter-final since finishing runner-up to Higgins in 2010 and in that period, five of his seven exits have been before the last 16 stage in York. With a potentially tough early round draw with guys like Zhao, Noppon Saengkham and Anthony Hamilton all well capable of taking him out before the last 16 stage for this sixth year in the last eight, Williams' form will need to improve slightly.
Mark Allen is a man who has been on top form in recent times. The 2011 UK runner-up was absolutely sublime in winning the International Championship, with centuries galore coming in the process. He only missed out on back-to-back finals by losing a decider to Kyren Wilson in the Champion of Champions and his first round exit in Belfast came as he seemed to run out of steam. Allen is the man to beat in this quarter in my view and the fact that he has just won a tournament that is formatted very similarly to this puts him in a good place. In the last two years Allen has been knocked out at the last 16 stage, with last 32 exits in 2014 and 2015 since he last made the quarters back in 2013. For me, he will make at least a third UK last 16 in a row and a potential third meeting inside four events against Neil Robertson jumps off the page when looking at this quarter.
Speaking of Robertson, his form has still been a little up and down this season but there are many more ups than there were this time last year. He won the season opening Riga Masters and was runner-up to Allen at the International Championship, though he has only gone beyond the last 32 in one of his five other ranking events so far this season. The Australian's record at the UK Championship between 2010 and 2015 was sublime, winning the title twice (2012 and 2015) making a further semi-final, two quarter-finals and only a last 16 decider defeat to Graeme Dott in 2014 being a slight blemish. The last two years have not been the best though, painfully losing in the last 128 as defending champion in 2016 and then losing his top 16 place and a spot in the Masters after falling in the last 32 a year ago to Mark Joyce. The Australian though is still a big contender in York this week.
Stephen Maguire has one of the best UK Championship records over a long period out of every single player in the field this week. The Scotsman won the title all the way back in 2004 and the last time he failed to make the last 16 at the very least was a year earlier in 2003. In the 13 years since winning the title in '04, he has made the last 16 five times, three quarter-finals, four semi-finals and one further final. This season he has had a couple of semi-finals at the Riga Masters and the English Open though he comes into this after a last 128 exit in Belfast to Michael Holt and a last 32 exit in Daqing to his potential last 32 opponent this week - Ali Carter. Given his record though in this event it is hard to rule Maguire out as a serious contender.
My fourth and final quarter choice is more of an outside selection, but someone who is showing signs of good form in recent times and that is Ali Carter. At the Northern Ireland Open a loss from 3-1 up against Eden Sharav denied him a third quarter-final in a row, having lost to the eventual winner of both the International Championship and the English Open at the last eight stage. This has come after a poor run of form in the few months leading up to that but with some confidence boosting wins, including a fightback victory against Mark Williams in Belfast, he looks in good shape for the next two weeks. His UK Championship record is decent, having had three quarter-finals and a semi-final in the six events between 2004 and 2009, as well as a gut-wrenching semi-final loss from 8-4 against Murphy in 2012. A potential last 32 tie with Stephen Maguire would be interesting as Carter has a great record against Maguire, while the Scot has a great record in this event and you would fancy either of them to kick on should they make the last 16. Carter does not look like he is far away from a really big run and if he can keep his emotions in check then he has every chance.
Ronnie O'Sullivan is the man to beat not just as the defending champion after his success against Shaun Murphy in last year's final, but also having made at least the semi-finals in all of the four events he has played in this season, winning two of them.
2011 champion Judd Trump is the most recent winner on tour though having defeated O'Sullivan to lift the Alex Higgins trophy last week in Belfast, while the ranking event prior to that was won by 2011 UK runner-up Mark Allen.
Mark Selby looked to be in form on the way to the semi-finals in Northern Ireland where he lost a classic to O'Sullivan and the two-time champion is also among the favourites to lift the UK title.
Struggling of late though are World champion Mark Williams and last year's losing Crucible finalist John Higgins while last year's UK runner-up Murphy is yet to really get out of the traps this season. The list of possible first time Triple Crown event winners is headed by Kyren Wilson who made the final of the recent Champion of Champions and Jack Lisowski who has motored up the rankings in the last 18 months.
It all makes for a potentially exciting tournament and it all starts on Tuesday with three days of last 128 action before the BBC cameras turn up for the start of the last 64 on Saturday.
Quarter 1
Last 128 draw: (Picks in bold)
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs Luke Simmonds
Yuan Sijun Vs Ken Doherty
Zhou Yuelong Vs Soheil Vahedi
Mark Davis Vs Sam Craigie
Marco Fu Vs Hammad Miah
Michael Georgiou Vs Luo Honghao
Jack Lisowski Vs Zhang Jiankang
Fergal O'Brien Vs Mei Xiwen
Lu Haotian Vs Tian Pengfei
Jimmy Robertson Vs Jordan Brown
Martin O'Donnell Vs Xu Si
Shaun Murphy Vs Chen Feilong
Ben Woollaston Vs Alfie Burden
Xiao Guodong Vs Sean O'Sullivan
Matthew Selt Vs Zhang Yong
Ding Junhui Vs Adam Stefanow
Ding Junhui is a two-time UK champion but has struggled for success in this event in recent years. His two triumphs came in 2005 and 2009 but he has failed to get to a UK quarter-final since 2011, with two last 128 exits in his last three visits to York. He does not have much form this year either, having played almost exclusively in China and entering only three ranking events. His one visit to the UK since the World Championships was for the Champion of Champions where he defeated Michael Georgiou before losing out to Shaun Murphy. The class act that Ding is, he could come good at any time, but he certainly looks vulnerable to an early exit at the moment.
Ronnie O'Sullivan is this year's defending champion and his record at the UK Championship overall is exceptional. This year marks the 25th anniversary of his first ever UK title win and since then he has picked up the trophy another five times, with one runner-up finish, three further semi-finals and six quarter-finals in that period - meaning he has reached the quarter-finals in 16 of the last 22 UK Championships that he has played in. In the ranking events he has played this season he reached the semi-finals of the English Open, the final of the Northern Ireland and has won both invitationals he entered at the Shanghai Masters and Champion of Champions which is an ominous sign for the rest of the field. The sort of form that O'Sullivan, who will celebrate his 43rd birthday during the tournament, is still able to achieve even after extended periods away from the game is frightening and at his best there are very few people that can match him so it will be interesting to see whether he brings his very best to the Barbican.
Marco Fu, Jimmy Robertson and Mark Davis are all players that could do well in this section. Fu though has had a really poor first half to the season, which was added to recently in Belfast by a last 128 exit that handed Chen Feilong his first win on tour. Jimmy Robertson of course has been riding high with his recent European Masters victory, though he has actually failed to get beyond the last 64 in three ranking events since then, while at the UK Championship he has only gone beyond the last 64 at the venue twice. Davis has had a nice season by reaching his first ever ranking final at the English Open, though in the two events since he has suffered last 64 and last 32 exits. He does have some form at the UK Championship though making the semi-finals in 2012 and the quarter-finals in 2014, but equally he lost in the last 128 last year and the last 64 in 2016 in York.
Jack Lisowski is one of the form men coming to the UK Championship this year. After starting the season with a run to the final in Riga, he has gone on to reach a further semi-final and three quarter-finals in ranking events, while his two recent last 32 exits in the Home Nations series were both at the hands of Judd Trump. His record in York is not good though, failing to get beyond the last 32 in any of his previous attempts and that is something he has every chance of putting right this year, given the way that he has been performing. For me he is probably the biggest threat to O'Sullivan in the first four rounds and is certainly more likely to make the last 16 than Fu who is in Lisowski's mini section.
My first quarter choice though is last year's losing finalist Shaun Murphy. The 2008 UK champion may have had a really poor start to the season but his record at this event and the fact that this is the year's first major could help him turn that slump around. Overall, he has suffered five last 128 exits out of eight ranking events, made one last 16 appearance as his best of the season and currently sits 54th on this year's money list, poor by the standards of the current world number nine. In the UK Championship though he has reached at least the semi-finals in six of his last 11 outings, including his title win in '08 and his appearances in the final both in 2012 and last year and at no point in that period has he failed to reach the last 16. His draw this week is not easy with a potential last 64 meeting with an in-form Martin O'Donnell as well as potential last 32 outings against either European Masters champion Jimmy Robertson or indeed Lu Haotian, who knocked him out in the last 16 at the China Championship. Being back at an event where he has had so much success though should help him focus on the positives in his game and get his mind in the right place and there have been positives of late, making the semi-finals of the Champion of Champions where he defeated Jimmy Robertson and Ding Junhui (both of whom are in this quarter) before losing to O'Sullivan in a match where Murphy made two centuries. Given the class that Murphy has it would be a big surprise if he does not come good at some point soon this season and coming to an event where his record is very solid provides the opportunity to really kick his 2018/2019 campaign into gear.
Ronnie O'Sullivan is this year's defending champion and his record at the UK Championship overall is exceptional. This year marks the 25th anniversary of his first ever UK title win and since then he has picked up the trophy another five times, with one runner-up finish, three further semi-finals and six quarter-finals in that period - meaning he has reached the quarter-finals in 16 of the last 22 UK Championships that he has played in. In the ranking events he has played this season he reached the semi-finals of the English Open, the final of the Northern Ireland and has won both invitationals he entered at the Shanghai Masters and Champion of Champions which is an ominous sign for the rest of the field. The sort of form that O'Sullivan, who will celebrate his 43rd birthday during the tournament, is still able to achieve even after extended periods away from the game is frightening and at his best there are very few people that can match him so it will be interesting to see whether he brings his very best to the Barbican.
Marco Fu, Jimmy Robertson and Mark Davis are all players that could do well in this section. Fu though has had a really poor first half to the season, which was added to recently in Belfast by a last 128 exit that handed Chen Feilong his first win on tour. Jimmy Robertson of course has been riding high with his recent European Masters victory, though he has actually failed to get beyond the last 64 in three ranking events since then, while at the UK Championship he has only gone beyond the last 64 at the venue twice. Davis has had a nice season by reaching his first ever ranking final at the English Open, though in the two events since he has suffered last 64 and last 32 exits. He does have some form at the UK Championship though making the semi-finals in 2012 and the quarter-finals in 2014, but equally he lost in the last 128 last year and the last 64 in 2016 in York.
Jack Lisowski is one of the form men coming to the UK Championship this year. After starting the season with a run to the final in Riga, he has gone on to reach a further semi-final and three quarter-finals in ranking events, while his two recent last 32 exits in the Home Nations series were both at the hands of Judd Trump. His record in York is not good though, failing to get beyond the last 32 in any of his previous attempts and that is something he has every chance of putting right this year, given the way that he has been performing. For me he is probably the biggest threat to O'Sullivan in the first four rounds and is certainly more likely to make the last 16 than Fu who is in Lisowski's mini section.
My first quarter choice though is last year's losing finalist Shaun Murphy. The 2008 UK champion may have had a really poor start to the season but his record at this event and the fact that this is the year's first major could help him turn that slump around. Overall, he has suffered five last 128 exits out of eight ranking events, made one last 16 appearance as his best of the season and currently sits 54th on this year's money list, poor by the standards of the current world number nine. In the UK Championship though he has reached at least the semi-finals in six of his last 11 outings, including his title win in '08 and his appearances in the final both in 2012 and last year and at no point in that period has he failed to reach the last 16. His draw this week is not easy with a potential last 64 meeting with an in-form Martin O'Donnell as well as potential last 32 outings against either European Masters champion Jimmy Robertson or indeed Lu Haotian, who knocked him out in the last 16 at the China Championship. Being back at an event where he has had so much success though should help him focus on the positives in his game and get his mind in the right place and there have been positives of late, making the semi-finals of the Champion of Champions where he defeated Jimmy Robertson and Ding Junhui (both of whom are in this quarter) before losing to O'Sullivan in a match where Murphy made two centuries. Given the class that Murphy has it would be a big surprise if he does not come good at some point soon this season and coming to an event where his record is very solid provides the opportunity to really kick his 2018/2019 campaign into gear.
Best of the rest: Jack Lisowski
Quarter choice: Shaun Murphy
Couge's Choices: For those that are not aware, Couge is a former participant of the Fantasy Snooker League. In the 2015/2016 season he was the league winner, as well as finishing second in last season's league and third in the 2014/2015 half-season version. In this preview I am debuting a new segment where Couge will make his tournament choices and his first is from the top quarter. Given his recent form, making three finals already this season, Couge has "can't see any other final" that does not involve Ronnie O'Sullivan.
Quarter 2
Last 128 draw: (Picks in bold)
Judd Trump Vs David Lilley
Dominic Dale Vs Gerard Greene
Mark King Vs Elliot Slessor
Li Hang Vs Lee Walker
Ryan Day Vs Joe O'Connor
Andrew Higginson Vs Nigel Bond
Joe Perry Vs John Astley
Michael Holt Vs Chen Zifan
Mark Joyce Vs Niu Zhuang
Anthony McGill Vs Lu Ning
Liam Highfield Vs Robin Hull
Luca Brecel Vs Fan Zhengyi
Tom Ford Vs Craig Steadman
Robert Milkins Vs Sanderson Lam
Alan McManus Vs Alexander Ursenbacher
John Higgins Vs Dechawat Poomjaeng
John Higgins has had a fairly odd start to the season so far. Missing the early events on the calendar, he then made the final at the China Championship but without playing anywhere near as well as you would expect him to play in making a ranking event final. Since then he has suffered two last 128 exits in the three events he has played in to Peter Lines and most recently Rory McLeod last week in Belfast. At the UK Championships itself, after winning the title in 2010 he then suffered four last 16 exits in a row before making the quarter-finals in 2015 and 2016, but then suffered another last 16 exit last year to Mark King. While there are a lot of players that could potentially beat Higgins in this quarter if he is not at his best, the one main threat to him would be the potential quarter-final with Trump.
Ryan Day put a very average UK Championship record to one side last year as he sailed through to the semi-finals for the first time in the event. Prior to that had been a number of early exits, particularly since the event switched to the flat draw and in 13 previous attempts he had never reached a quarter-final. One thing he has got in his favour this year is that he comes to York off the back of making three quarter-finals in his last four events, with a narrow last 32 loss at the International Championship his only slight blemish, though he will also be disappointed not to have kicked on. His main threat in this quarter, like Higgins, will also be Trump who put him out in the quarters last week in Belfast, but the likes of Andrew Higginson and Joe Perry could definitely challenge him in the early rounds.
Luca Brecel and Anthony McGill are two potential dark horses, though they have struggled this season so far. In seven ranking events so far this season, McGill has only got to one last 16 and one further last 32 which is simply not good enough for someone ranked just outside of the top 16. He has made one quarter-final in UK Championship history but has followed it with three successive last 64 defeats and he is certainly vulnerable again this year. As for Brecel, his last 16 at the Northern Ireland Open to Trump means he is still to achieve a ranking event quarter-final in the calendar year 2018, though there were signs of promise in Belfast. The UK Championship does bring back good memories for him though, making his maiden quarter-final at the event back in 2012 before making another in 2016, both of which he lost to Murphy. Throw in the fact that he made the last 16 back in 2015 and he has made it to the last 16 in half of his six Barbican visits.
My second quarter choice though is one of the form men and a former UK champion in Judd Trump. The left-hander won the Northern Ireland Open last week, almost as a direct response to criticism of him following his 6-1 loss to Kyren Wilson in the Champion of Champions and the rivalry that seems to have been sparked between the two. He was in sublime form in Belfast but now he needs to transform that into the big events. Since winning the UK Championship in 2011 he has not quite won as many of the big events as people have expected, missing out narrowly on winning this title again in 2014 where he lost the final 10-9 to O'Sullivan. Other than that his five other Barbican appearances since his title run in 2011 have only produced one last 16 showing and he has not been beyond the last 32 in York since that 2014 final. One thing he does not lack for is ability and the confidence his recent victory has given him will surely put him in a good place for a title bid this year. Day is probably the one big threat standing between him and the quarter-finals this year where Higgins is probably the only man that could stop him should Trump reach that stage and with Higgins' form you have to favour Trump for this section overall.
Ryan Day put a very average UK Championship record to one side last year as he sailed through to the semi-finals for the first time in the event. Prior to that had been a number of early exits, particularly since the event switched to the flat draw and in 13 previous attempts he had never reached a quarter-final. One thing he has got in his favour this year is that he comes to York off the back of making three quarter-finals in his last four events, with a narrow last 32 loss at the International Championship his only slight blemish, though he will also be disappointed not to have kicked on. His main threat in this quarter, like Higgins, will also be Trump who put him out in the quarters last week in Belfast, but the likes of Andrew Higginson and Joe Perry could definitely challenge him in the early rounds.
Luca Brecel and Anthony McGill are two potential dark horses, though they have struggled this season so far. In seven ranking events so far this season, McGill has only got to one last 16 and one further last 32 which is simply not good enough for someone ranked just outside of the top 16. He has made one quarter-final in UK Championship history but has followed it with three successive last 64 defeats and he is certainly vulnerable again this year. As for Brecel, his last 16 at the Northern Ireland Open to Trump means he is still to achieve a ranking event quarter-final in the calendar year 2018, though there were signs of promise in Belfast. The UK Championship does bring back good memories for him though, making his maiden quarter-final at the event back in 2012 before making another in 2016, both of which he lost to Murphy. Throw in the fact that he made the last 16 back in 2015 and he has made it to the last 16 in half of his six Barbican visits.
My second quarter choice though is one of the form men and a former UK champion in Judd Trump. The left-hander won the Northern Ireland Open last week, almost as a direct response to criticism of him following his 6-1 loss to Kyren Wilson in the Champion of Champions and the rivalry that seems to have been sparked between the two. He was in sublime form in Belfast but now he needs to transform that into the big events. Since winning the UK Championship in 2011 he has not quite won as many of the big events as people have expected, missing out narrowly on winning this title again in 2014 where he lost the final 10-9 to O'Sullivan. Other than that his five other Barbican appearances since his title run in 2011 have only produced one last 16 showing and he has not been beyond the last 32 in York since that 2014 final. One thing he does not lack for is ability and the confidence his recent victory has given him will surely put him in a good place for a title bid this year. Day is probably the one big threat standing between him and the quarter-finals this year where Higgins is probably the only man that could stop him should Trump reach that stage and with Higgins' form you have to favour Trump for this section overall.
Best of the rest: Luca Brecel
Quarter choice: Judd Trump
Quarter 3
Last 128 draw: (Picks in bold)
Mark Selby Vs James Cahill
Akani Songsermsawad Vs Eden Sharav
Ricky Walden Vs Jak Jones
Michael White Vs Joe Swail
Stuart Bingham Vs James Wattana
Kurt Maflin Vs Zhang Anda
David Gilbert Vs Ashley Carty
Peter Ebdon Vs Chris Totten
Stuart Carrington Vs Paul Davison
Yan Bingtao Vs Lukas Kleckers
Mike Dunn Vs Allan Taylor
Kyren Wilson Vs Andy Lee
Gary Wilson Vs Billy Castle
Liang Wenbo Vs Sam Baird
Robbie Williams Vs Ian Burns
Barry Hawkins Vs Jamie Clarke
Mark Selby is the headliner of quarter number three and he comes into this in good form having narrowly missed out on victory over Ronnie O'Sullivan in the semi-finals of the Northern Ireland Open. Prior to that he fell to Neil Robertson in both the first round of the Champion of Champions (despite a 147 maximum break) and the quarter-finals of the International Championship. His record both in this event and the International Championship shows that he thrives over the longer best-of-11 matches compared to the best-of-7 frame games. In the last six UK Championships he has won the event twice, making a further final in 2013 and a semi-final in 2015 (both of which he also lost to Robertson), though both last year and in 2014 he struggled to last 64 exits. Having also won earlier in the year in China, Selby could well be primed for another big UK Championship run.
Barry Hawkins however is someone who has an unusually poor UK Championship record, at least in recent times. He has only ever reached one UK quarter-final and never gone beyond that stage. In 2014 he famously lost in the last 64 from 5-0 up against Nigel Bond and then fell at the same stage again in the next two years to Robin Hull and Fergal O'Brien, the latter of whom had five centuries in that match. Last year he broke that spell but could go no further than the last 32 where he was whitewashed by Akani Songsermsawad. His season started well with some good runs out in China but has gone a bit quiet in recent weeks, first with a last 64 loss at the European Masters, followed by two last 32 defeats at the English Open and then the International Championship before a first round exit in Northern Ireland.
Stuart Bingham has a bit of previous form in the UK Championships, having a spell between 2010 and 2014 where he reached two quarter-finals and two semi-finals out of the five events, but aside from that he has not had such a consistent record in the event as other top players and has lost out prior to the last 16 stage in both of the last two years. This season has seen him pick up the English Open title recently with a superb run of form, but since then he has not won a match, losing in the last 64 of the International Championship and the first round of both the Champion of Champions and Northern Ireland Open. He also has some dangerous players in his section of the draw that he would have to get through just to make his first last 16 in York since 2015.
One of those players is his potential last 32 opponent in David Gilbert. Last time out in Northern Ireland, Gilbert made the quarter-finals before losing out to Ronnie O'Sullivan, having made the last 16 of the International Championship as well as reaching the final of the World Open at the start of the season to leave him well positioned on this season's money list. At the UK Championship he has not done a great deal of note, with a best finish of the last 16 in 2016 but the way he is playing he could easily match that this year and maybe even go one or two rounds better.
My third quarter choice is someone who is starting to thrive in the big events and that is Kyren Wilson. In the UK Championship his best finish may only be the last 32 but he has a smaller sample size than many players, especially considering that this is only his fourth UK Championship since winning his first ranking title. However, he was a finalist at the Masters in January and in his last three appearances at the Crucible he has had two quarter-finals, prior to the semi-final he achieved in May. He was also a finalist recently at the Champion of Champions, beating Mark Williams, Judd Trump and an in-form Mark Allen before suffering a tough 10-9 loss to O'Sullivan and given his determination, he will use the pain of that loss to inspire him on in future big events and I believe that will start right here in York. There have also been other bright sparks this season such as his semi-final at the Shanghai Masters before losing to O'Sullivan there too, as well as winning the Paul Hunter Classic in Germany. Given his results in the World Championship and the Masters he made at the start of the year, it does not feel like it will be long until Wilson is able to bag one of the Triple Crown events because the mental strength required to do so is something he has in abundance.
Barry Hawkins however is someone who has an unusually poor UK Championship record, at least in recent times. He has only ever reached one UK quarter-final and never gone beyond that stage. In 2014 he famously lost in the last 64 from 5-0 up against Nigel Bond and then fell at the same stage again in the next two years to Robin Hull and Fergal O'Brien, the latter of whom had five centuries in that match. Last year he broke that spell but could go no further than the last 32 where he was whitewashed by Akani Songsermsawad. His season started well with some good runs out in China but has gone a bit quiet in recent weeks, first with a last 64 loss at the European Masters, followed by two last 32 defeats at the English Open and then the International Championship before a first round exit in Northern Ireland.
Stuart Bingham has a bit of previous form in the UK Championships, having a spell between 2010 and 2014 where he reached two quarter-finals and two semi-finals out of the five events, but aside from that he has not had such a consistent record in the event as other top players and has lost out prior to the last 16 stage in both of the last two years. This season has seen him pick up the English Open title recently with a superb run of form, but since then he has not won a match, losing in the last 64 of the International Championship and the first round of both the Champion of Champions and Northern Ireland Open. He also has some dangerous players in his section of the draw that he would have to get through just to make his first last 16 in York since 2015.
One of those players is his potential last 32 opponent in David Gilbert. Last time out in Northern Ireland, Gilbert made the quarter-finals before losing out to Ronnie O'Sullivan, having made the last 16 of the International Championship as well as reaching the final of the World Open at the start of the season to leave him well positioned on this season's money list. At the UK Championship he has not done a great deal of note, with a best finish of the last 16 in 2016 but the way he is playing he could easily match that this year and maybe even go one or two rounds better.
My third quarter choice is someone who is starting to thrive in the big events and that is Kyren Wilson. In the UK Championship his best finish may only be the last 32 but he has a smaller sample size than many players, especially considering that this is only his fourth UK Championship since winning his first ranking title. However, he was a finalist at the Masters in January and in his last three appearances at the Crucible he has had two quarter-finals, prior to the semi-final he achieved in May. He was also a finalist recently at the Champion of Champions, beating Mark Williams, Judd Trump and an in-form Mark Allen before suffering a tough 10-9 loss to O'Sullivan and given his determination, he will use the pain of that loss to inspire him on in future big events and I believe that will start right here in York. There have also been other bright sparks this season such as his semi-final at the Shanghai Masters before losing to O'Sullivan there too, as well as winning the Paul Hunter Classic in Germany. Given his results in the World Championship and the Masters he made at the start of the year, it does not feel like it will be long until Wilson is able to bag one of the Triple Crown events because the mental strength required to do so is something he has in abundance.
Best of the rest: David Gilbert
Quarter choice: Kyren Wilson
Couge's Choices: Couge's second and third selections both come from the third quarter of the draw. The first is a dark horse choice as he looks at Sam Baird. He believes that "Sam Baird may win a few matches" as a darkhorse starting out in the last 128 against Liang Wenbo. Baird has had two successes in recent times defeating Shaun Murphy 6-0 and 4-2 in the last 128 of the International Championship and Northern Ireland Open respectively.
Next, he lines up world number one Mark Selby as the other half of his chosen final to take on O'Sullivan, believing that he "cannot see any other final" than Selby Vs O'Sullivan. Mark Allen in quarter four is the one player he thinks could "upset" an O'Sullivan/Selby showdown.
Quarter 4
Last 128 draw: (Picks in bold)
Mark Allen Vs Basem Eltahhan
Rory McLeod Vs Peter Lines
Martin Gould Vs Harvey Chandler
Hossein Vafei Vs Ashley Hugill
Neil Robertson Vs Kishan Hirani
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh Vs Jimmy White
Graeme Dott Vs Oliver Lines
Matthew Stevens Vs Ross Muir
Chris Wakelin Vs Duane Jones
Ali Carter Vs Thor Chuan Leong
Scott Donaldson Vs Li Yuan
Stephen Maguire Vs Simon Lichtenberg
Noppon Saengkham Vs Hamza Akbar
Anthony Hamilton Vs Rod Lawler
Daniel Wells Vs Zhao Xintong
Mark Williams Vs Adam Duffy
Mark Williams has not been on the best run of form since winning the World Open in the summer. Since his run to the last 16 of the China Championship, that was ended abruptly by potential last 64 opponent Zhao Xintong, Williams has suffered a last 32 exit at the English Open and two last 64 exits and looked altogether out of sorts. At this event he has only achieved one quarter-final since finishing runner-up to Higgins in 2010 and in that period, five of his seven exits have been before the last 16 stage in York. With a potentially tough early round draw with guys like Zhao, Noppon Saengkham and Anthony Hamilton all well capable of taking him out before the last 16 stage for this sixth year in the last eight, Williams' form will need to improve slightly.
Mark Allen is a man who has been on top form in recent times. The 2011 UK runner-up was absolutely sublime in winning the International Championship, with centuries galore coming in the process. He only missed out on back-to-back finals by losing a decider to Kyren Wilson in the Champion of Champions and his first round exit in Belfast came as he seemed to run out of steam. Allen is the man to beat in this quarter in my view and the fact that he has just won a tournament that is formatted very similarly to this puts him in a good place. In the last two years Allen has been knocked out at the last 16 stage, with last 32 exits in 2014 and 2015 since he last made the quarters back in 2013. For me, he will make at least a third UK last 16 in a row and a potential third meeting inside four events against Neil Robertson jumps off the page when looking at this quarter.
Speaking of Robertson, his form has still been a little up and down this season but there are many more ups than there were this time last year. He won the season opening Riga Masters and was runner-up to Allen at the International Championship, though he has only gone beyond the last 32 in one of his five other ranking events so far this season. The Australian's record at the UK Championship between 2010 and 2015 was sublime, winning the title twice (2012 and 2015) making a further semi-final, two quarter-finals and only a last 16 decider defeat to Graeme Dott in 2014 being a slight blemish. The last two years have not been the best though, painfully losing in the last 128 as defending champion in 2016 and then losing his top 16 place and a spot in the Masters after falling in the last 32 a year ago to Mark Joyce. The Australian though is still a big contender in York this week.
Stephen Maguire has one of the best UK Championship records over a long period out of every single player in the field this week. The Scotsman won the title all the way back in 2004 and the last time he failed to make the last 16 at the very least was a year earlier in 2003. In the 13 years since winning the title in '04, he has made the last 16 five times, three quarter-finals, four semi-finals and one further final. This season he has had a couple of semi-finals at the Riga Masters and the English Open though he comes into this after a last 128 exit in Belfast to Michael Holt and a last 32 exit in Daqing to his potential last 32 opponent this week - Ali Carter. Given his record though in this event it is hard to rule Maguire out as a serious contender.
My fourth and final quarter choice is more of an outside selection, but someone who is showing signs of good form in recent times and that is Ali Carter. At the Northern Ireland Open a loss from 3-1 up against Eden Sharav denied him a third quarter-final in a row, having lost to the eventual winner of both the International Championship and the English Open at the last eight stage. This has come after a poor run of form in the few months leading up to that but with some confidence boosting wins, including a fightback victory against Mark Williams in Belfast, he looks in good shape for the next two weeks. His UK Championship record is decent, having had three quarter-finals and a semi-final in the six events between 2004 and 2009, as well as a gut-wrenching semi-final loss from 8-4 against Murphy in 2012. A potential last 32 tie with Stephen Maguire would be interesting as Carter has a great record against Maguire, while the Scot has a great record in this event and you would fancy either of them to kick on should they make the last 16. Carter does not look like he is far away from a really big run and if he can keep his emotions in check then he has every chance.
Best of the rest: Neil Robertson
Quarter choice: Ali Carter
Tournament winner selection: Kyren Wilson
Couge's Choices: The final selection from Couge for the UK Championship both come from quarter four. He has picked out Noppon Saengkham as a dark horse who could be one to win a few. The Thai may be the biggest threat in Mark Williams' mini section and has reached the quarter-finals of the English Open, as well as semi-finals at the World Open and Welsh Open so far in 2018.
Whatever the outcomes may be, this shapes up as a fascinating UK Championship. I will be in York this week for the last 128 round providing live blogs and twitter updates on the matches before the BBC TV cameras arrive on the scene. As has now become tradition those matches will be played over the best-of-11 frames, as will each round up until the best-of-19 frame final where the winner of the £175,000 first prize will be decided.
Martin O'Donnell interview
18 months ago Martin O'Donnell was at Q School and fighting for his professional playing rights having just dropped off the tour.
Now though he has achieved a career high in the world rankings by getting into the top 64 and his career is firmly heading in a positive direction after an excellent 2018 that has seen him make the Shoot-Out semi-finals, two other ranking quarter-finals and he comes into the UK Championship in fine form having just made the last 16 in Belfast.
It is fair to say that the next thing on his list of targets would be a good run in York to continue climbing the rankings and really put his name out there.
"The UK Championship is always an exciting time. It's the first BBC event of the season and there's a lot of high profile and attention around the event", O'Donnell states.
The first hurdle for him to get over is a match against young Chinese player Xu Si. Xu has not had the best of seasons, failing to get beyond the last 64 in any ranking event, but his run to the semi-finals of last season's Indian Open shows that he is a big threat and will not provide an easy game for O'Donnell.
"I haven't seen loads of Xu before. From what I have seen he is a dangerous player on his day, but is vulnerable if things don't go his way. I'll just be trying to focus on myself. It's a game I can obviously lose but I'm feeling good at the moment".
As good as his current form may be, there is little getting away from his York record. Since the tournament became 128 at the venue in the flat structure, O'Donnell has failed to win a game, so he certainly has a duck to break at the Barbican this year.
"I don't think I've won at the UK Championships since it's moved to York - and that's nothing against York because it's a lovely city. As it's the second biggest event of the year I have probably tried too hard, wanting to win too much and adding pressure onto myself. I'm having a good season though and my tour card is looking safe (for next season) so there's not too much pressure on this year", O'Donnell believes.
The security of his tour place for next season has come courtesy of a fine run of form in this campaign. Two quarter-finals at the China Championship and International Championship as well as the last 16 run in Northern Ireland have seen him show some excellent play and pick up some big results, but O'Donnell does not feel that there is one overwhelming factor in this success.
"There's not one thing in particular that has caused my recent form, it's a combination of different factors. I have been trying hard to change my approach to the game. In the past I have been too cautious but I have been working hard with my coach Ian McCulloch to become more aggressive and that's been working so far. I've also moved clubs and I'm now just a few minutes from home. It's perfect - the conditions are good, they let me get on so there are no distractions and because of that I get a better quality of practice. My home life is good too. I had a baby a year ago and now I'm more relaxed at home and not thinking about the game too much".
It all kicked off with the quarter-final run at the China Championship, but none of the victories over Luca Brecel, Tom Ford or Liang Wenbo at the venue would have been possible without a turn around in fortunes at the interval in his last 128 qualifier.
"I had been struggling at the start of the season and it was in the qualifiers for the China Championship that I turned a corner. I was 3-1 down to Elliot Slessor and I sorted things out at the interval with my coach and I played well after the break and have done ever since. Me and Luca had a great game (in the last 64 in China). There were lots of breaks, almost a break in every frame and I think my safety made the difference in that one. Tom Ford played really well to get back into our match in the next round. I had gone ahead early but then had to play well from 4-3 down and ended up winning on the re-spotted black in the decider", O'Donnell explains
"Then against Liang Wenbo the first frame was massive. He was in first but broke down and I was able to get in and steal the frame on the black and then make make a big break in the next. In the space of 15 minutes or so I went from looking like going 1-0 down to leading 2-0 and I was able to dominate from there. I have started dominating games recently which is pleasing. I have realised that you have to dominate games to far in tournaments, because you don't want to use a lot of mental energy in the early rounds", the world number 59 added.
If the results in Guangzhou were impressive then the run he went on at the International Championship in Daqing was absolute brilliance. From 4-2 down in his last 64 match against Peter Lines, O'Donnell proceeded to win 16 of his next 17 frames to make it through to the quarter-finals.
"I was on a great run of form there really. I played great at the end against Peter winning three frames in one visit and having another 50 in there. To beat Ford 6-0 and David Gilbert 6-1 you've got to play well as they're both class players and Gilbert is high up on the one-year list so he's having a great season. All parts of my game are coming together. My scoring needed work but now I'm scoring when I'm getting in and playing great safety. It can turn around quickly and now this has happened I know this sort of form is in the locker".
The run ended at the last eight stage in heartbreaking fashion, losing out in a final-frame decider to Matthew Stevens, with some bad fortune of going into the reds from the blue and knocking a red into the corner. Without that it could have been a very different tale.
"I was a bit gutted about that match. I went into my shell halfway through and let Matthew dominate. He had some bad luck potting a red and going in-off in the middle before I had my bad luck in the decider. It was disappointing to do it because I'd woken up in those last couple of frames and could've won it from there. I'd had my fair share of luck getting to the quarter-final though and perhaps a lack of experience on the TV table cost me as well in that match".
The combined £41,500 the 32-year-old has made from getting to those two quarter-finals has helped him get to a tally of £51,500 for the season which currently has him in 20th position on the provisional World Grand Prix list and £17,900 clear of 33rd place with just three events to go before the cut-off.
"It's quite funny really because that was my target at the start of the season. I know I'd never been near qualifying for the Grand Prix before but if you don't set these targets you never know what you can achieve. I won't look too far ahead. I need to beat Xu Si in York or I could look less comfortable on the list. I would be delighted to qualify".
While natural instinct may tell him to look over his shoulder, O'Donnell could put himself in the frame for Player Championship qualification, with the gap between him and 16th standing at just £3,725 if his fine recent spell continues, but O'Donnell does not want to get ahead of himself.
"That'd be an unbelievable achievement. It's obviously the next target if I qualify for the World Grand Prix. I've never been in the top 64 before so just getting into the top 32 on the one-year list would be massive. I'm trying not to let it distract me. I've played well for a good period and I don't want to add pressure on myself and just carry on enjoying my snooker. These are all bonus events and I'm just focused on the main ranking events".
Whether people believe it should be a ranking event or not, the facts will show that O'Donnell is a ranking event semi-finalist and the run he had earlier this year on home turf at the Shoot-Out was an enjoyable experience despite the nerves that come with it.
"You need a bit of luck in the event but there's no pressure like it. Being in Watford it was a local tournament for me and I had a lot of friends and family there supporting me, we had a laugh and a good time. It's so enjoyable but anything can happen. You're just thinking 'Do. Not. Miss' when you're in because you won't have time to make up for it. You need a bit of bottle too, to stay calm. Even 24 is a big lead in that format".
It's a format that has caused much debate since it came on to the calendar and particularly since it gained ranking status in 2017, but O'Donnell gives a very honest explanation of why this tournament should have it's place and what it provides for the players.
"Most players are in agreement that it shouldn't be ranking because of the different rules to normal events and it could cost someone their tour card at the end of the season. There is a place for it on the calendar though. There's so much pressure on tour and most of the tour are worried about something so this is a chance to go out and enjoy it and remember that snooker's a great game. Tournaments should be enjoyable to play in and you can see the players get a big buzz at the shoot-out. I see a lot of guys on tour under pressure and not looking like they're enjoying events and wins are hard to come by".
The pressure of the Shoot-Out is more of an enjoyable pressure for the players. The pressure O'Donnell was under in May 2017 when he was fighting for his career and then left to rely on the results of others on the final day of Q School to gain a tour card via the Order of Merit is the exact opposite.
"That Saturday was one of the worst days of my life. I was looking at the final round matches and needed two out of three games to go my way. I had a slice of toast in the morning but other than that I was too nervous to eat anything until it was all over. I needed Paul Davison to win against James Cahill and Paul had already qualified (via the order of merit). He deserves a lot of credit for still trying in that match, especially after going 2-0 down in a race to four. I still owe Paul Davison a drink for winning his game. It was a sliding doors moment because I probably would've got a job otherwise. Q School is a horrible place to be and I wouldn't wish it on any player and afterwards I said to myself 'You are not putting yourself in this position again for a long time'".
So far, O'Donnell is making good on the promise he made to himself, having climbed into the top 64 on the ranking list after just 18 months of his guaranteed two-year tour card. Nothing he has achieved would have been possible without the fortune he had on May 20 2017, but now is not the time to sit back, as the left-hander now wants to kick on further.
"My first target is to win a match in York!! I'd love to get back to Berlin for the German Masters. I qualified in my first year on tour but haven't done since and it's a great event. Getting to the Crucible is another big goal. It sounds silly but I also just want to finish as high as possible in the rankings. To get in the top 48 would be a nice target. It's not easy to win matches but I'm confident and my game is in great shape. I'd love to get to a semi-final or final now having had the two quarter-finals but I also might not reach another quarter-final all season. My main goal is to keep improving. It takes a lot of hard work but it's worth it".
His top 48 target is already looking good, as he currently lies 40th on the provisional end-of-season ranking list. Now he has found his groove on tour though there could be plenty more to come from Martin O'Donnell and I would like to wish him all the best as he starts his UK Championship campaign against Xu Si on Tuesday 27 November at 2.30pm.
Now though he has achieved a career high in the world rankings by getting into the top 64 and his career is firmly heading in a positive direction after an excellent 2018 that has seen him make the Shoot-Out semi-finals, two other ranking quarter-finals and he comes into the UK Championship in fine form having just made the last 16 in Belfast.
It is fair to say that the next thing on his list of targets would be a good run in York to continue climbing the rankings and really put his name out there.
"The UK Championship is always an exciting time. It's the first BBC event of the season and there's a lot of high profile and attention around the event", O'Donnell states.
The first hurdle for him to get over is a match against young Chinese player Xu Si. Xu has not had the best of seasons, failing to get beyond the last 64 in any ranking event, but his run to the semi-finals of last season's Indian Open shows that he is a big threat and will not provide an easy game for O'Donnell.
"I haven't seen loads of Xu before. From what I have seen he is a dangerous player on his day, but is vulnerable if things don't go his way. I'll just be trying to focus on myself. It's a game I can obviously lose but I'm feeling good at the moment".
As good as his current form may be, there is little getting away from his York record. Since the tournament became 128 at the venue in the flat structure, O'Donnell has failed to win a game, so he certainly has a duck to break at the Barbican this year.
"I don't think I've won at the UK Championships since it's moved to York - and that's nothing against York because it's a lovely city. As it's the second biggest event of the year I have probably tried too hard, wanting to win too much and adding pressure onto myself. I'm having a good season though and my tour card is looking safe (for next season) so there's not too much pressure on this year", O'Donnell believes.
The security of his tour place for next season has come courtesy of a fine run of form in this campaign. Two quarter-finals at the China Championship and International Championship as well as the last 16 run in Northern Ireland have seen him show some excellent play and pick up some big results, but O'Donnell does not feel that there is one overwhelming factor in this success.
"There's not one thing in particular that has caused my recent form, it's a combination of different factors. I have been trying hard to change my approach to the game. In the past I have been too cautious but I have been working hard with my coach Ian McCulloch to become more aggressive and that's been working so far. I've also moved clubs and I'm now just a few minutes from home. It's perfect - the conditions are good, they let me get on so there are no distractions and because of that I get a better quality of practice. My home life is good too. I had a baby a year ago and now I'm more relaxed at home and not thinking about the game too much".
It all kicked off with the quarter-final run at the China Championship, but none of the victories over Luca Brecel, Tom Ford or Liang Wenbo at the venue would have been possible without a turn around in fortunes at the interval in his last 128 qualifier.
"I had been struggling at the start of the season and it was in the qualifiers for the China Championship that I turned a corner. I was 3-1 down to Elliot Slessor and I sorted things out at the interval with my coach and I played well after the break and have done ever since. Me and Luca had a great game (in the last 64 in China). There were lots of breaks, almost a break in every frame and I think my safety made the difference in that one. Tom Ford played really well to get back into our match in the next round. I had gone ahead early but then had to play well from 4-3 down and ended up winning on the re-spotted black in the decider", O'Donnell explains
"Then against Liang Wenbo the first frame was massive. He was in first but broke down and I was able to get in and steal the frame on the black and then make make a big break in the next. In the space of 15 minutes or so I went from looking like going 1-0 down to leading 2-0 and I was able to dominate from there. I have started dominating games recently which is pleasing. I have realised that you have to dominate games to far in tournaments, because you don't want to use a lot of mental energy in the early rounds", the world number 59 added.
If the results in Guangzhou were impressive then the run he went on at the International Championship in Daqing was absolute brilliance. From 4-2 down in his last 64 match against Peter Lines, O'Donnell proceeded to win 16 of his next 17 frames to make it through to the quarter-finals.
"I was on a great run of form there really. I played great at the end against Peter winning three frames in one visit and having another 50 in there. To beat Ford 6-0 and David Gilbert 6-1 you've got to play well as they're both class players and Gilbert is high up on the one-year list so he's having a great season. All parts of my game are coming together. My scoring needed work but now I'm scoring when I'm getting in and playing great safety. It can turn around quickly and now this has happened I know this sort of form is in the locker".
The run ended at the last eight stage in heartbreaking fashion, losing out in a final-frame decider to Matthew Stevens, with some bad fortune of going into the reds from the blue and knocking a red into the corner. Without that it could have been a very different tale.
"I was a bit gutted about that match. I went into my shell halfway through and let Matthew dominate. He had some bad luck potting a red and going in-off in the middle before I had my bad luck in the decider. It was disappointing to do it because I'd woken up in those last couple of frames and could've won it from there. I'd had my fair share of luck getting to the quarter-final though and perhaps a lack of experience on the TV table cost me as well in that match".
The combined £41,500 the 32-year-old has made from getting to those two quarter-finals has helped him get to a tally of £51,500 for the season which currently has him in 20th position on the provisional World Grand Prix list and £17,900 clear of 33rd place with just three events to go before the cut-off.
"It's quite funny really because that was my target at the start of the season. I know I'd never been near qualifying for the Grand Prix before but if you don't set these targets you never know what you can achieve. I won't look too far ahead. I need to beat Xu Si in York or I could look less comfortable on the list. I would be delighted to qualify".
While natural instinct may tell him to look over his shoulder, O'Donnell could put himself in the frame for Player Championship qualification, with the gap between him and 16th standing at just £3,725 if his fine recent spell continues, but O'Donnell does not want to get ahead of himself.
"That'd be an unbelievable achievement. It's obviously the next target if I qualify for the World Grand Prix. I've never been in the top 64 before so just getting into the top 32 on the one-year list would be massive. I'm trying not to let it distract me. I've played well for a good period and I don't want to add pressure on myself and just carry on enjoying my snooker. These are all bonus events and I'm just focused on the main ranking events".
Whether people believe it should be a ranking event or not, the facts will show that O'Donnell is a ranking event semi-finalist and the run he had earlier this year on home turf at the Shoot-Out was an enjoyable experience despite the nerves that come with it.
"You need a bit of luck in the event but there's no pressure like it. Being in Watford it was a local tournament for me and I had a lot of friends and family there supporting me, we had a laugh and a good time. It's so enjoyable but anything can happen. You're just thinking 'Do. Not. Miss' when you're in because you won't have time to make up for it. You need a bit of bottle too, to stay calm. Even 24 is a big lead in that format".
It's a format that has caused much debate since it came on to the calendar and particularly since it gained ranking status in 2017, but O'Donnell gives a very honest explanation of why this tournament should have it's place and what it provides for the players.
"Most players are in agreement that it shouldn't be ranking because of the different rules to normal events and it could cost someone their tour card at the end of the season. There is a place for it on the calendar though. There's so much pressure on tour and most of the tour are worried about something so this is a chance to go out and enjoy it and remember that snooker's a great game. Tournaments should be enjoyable to play in and you can see the players get a big buzz at the shoot-out. I see a lot of guys on tour under pressure and not looking like they're enjoying events and wins are hard to come by".
The pressure of the Shoot-Out is more of an enjoyable pressure for the players. The pressure O'Donnell was under in May 2017 when he was fighting for his career and then left to rely on the results of others on the final day of Q School to gain a tour card via the Order of Merit is the exact opposite.
"That Saturday was one of the worst days of my life. I was looking at the final round matches and needed two out of three games to go my way. I had a slice of toast in the morning but other than that I was too nervous to eat anything until it was all over. I needed Paul Davison to win against James Cahill and Paul had already qualified (via the order of merit). He deserves a lot of credit for still trying in that match, especially after going 2-0 down in a race to four. I still owe Paul Davison a drink for winning his game. It was a sliding doors moment because I probably would've got a job otherwise. Q School is a horrible place to be and I wouldn't wish it on any player and afterwards I said to myself 'You are not putting yourself in this position again for a long time'".
So far, O'Donnell is making good on the promise he made to himself, having climbed into the top 64 on the ranking list after just 18 months of his guaranteed two-year tour card. Nothing he has achieved would have been possible without the fortune he had on May 20 2017, but now is not the time to sit back, as the left-hander now wants to kick on further.
"My first target is to win a match in York!! I'd love to get back to Berlin for the German Masters. I qualified in my first year on tour but haven't done since and it's a great event. Getting to the Crucible is another big goal. It sounds silly but I also just want to finish as high as possible in the rankings. To get in the top 48 would be a nice target. It's not easy to win matches but I'm confident and my game is in great shape. I'd love to get to a semi-final or final now having had the two quarter-finals but I also might not reach another quarter-final all season. My main goal is to keep improving. It takes a lot of hard work but it's worth it".
His top 48 target is already looking good, as he currently lies 40th on the provisional end-of-season ranking list. Now he has found his groove on tour though there could be plenty more to come from Martin O'Donnell and I would like to wish him all the best as he starts his UK Championship campaign against Xu Si on Tuesday 27 November at 2.30pm.
Saturday, 24 November 2018
Fantasy Snooker Update: Northern Ireland points and UK Championship info
After Judd Trump's success at the Northern Ireland Open there have been a few slight changes in the Fantasy Snooker table prior to the season's first double points event, the UK Championship, where the deadline for picks is 2.30pm on Tuesday.
Defending Fantasy Snooker champion Kellie Barker is still on top of the table, but moves have been made by TungstenDarts who has picked a winner and two finalists from the last three events, while Daz Muckian has had the winner of the last two events to move up to second spot.
Here is how the table stands after events in Belfast:
Kellie Barker 495
Daz Muckian 471
Tungsten Darts 453
Ryan Duckett 450
Matt Butler 439
Rob Chipp 437
LTD Syndicate 436
Daniela Reich 414
Phil Mudd 403
Phil Robinson 400
Stephen McCabe 397
Rob Francis 393
The Cue View 391
Andy (APB147) 373
Cluster of Reds 373
Voihelevettisua 372
Dani M (esnukero) 369
Anatole Compton 367
Shaun Hunt 365
Steven Bunn 364
Munraj Pal 360
Andrew Devonshire 354
Martin Pearlman 351
Square Sausage 346
Chris Watts 335
FAM147 324
Kim Kristensen 316
Alex Abrahams 309
Markus 307
Debbie Dymott 304
Anthony (antow73) 279
Kelvin Platten 231
Pete Tscherewik 226
Daniel Gavin 216
Don't forget the deadline for the two picks for the UK Championship is Tuesday 27 November at 2.30pm before the first set of last 128 matches gets underway in York. Good luck to all the players ahead of this huge event.
Defending Fantasy Snooker champion Kellie Barker is still on top of the table, but moves have been made by TungstenDarts who has picked a winner and two finalists from the last three events, while Daz Muckian has had the winner of the last two events to move up to second spot.
Here is how the table stands after events in Belfast:
Kellie Barker 495
Daz Muckian 471
Tungsten Darts 453
Ryan Duckett 450
Matt Butler 439
Rob Chipp 437
LTD Syndicate 436
Daniela Reich 414
Phil Mudd 403
Phil Robinson 400
Stephen McCabe 397
Rob Francis 393
The Cue View 391
Andy (APB147) 373
Cluster of Reds 373
Voihelevettisua 372
Dani M (esnukero) 369
Anatole Compton 367
Shaun Hunt 365
Steven Bunn 364
Munraj Pal 360
Andrew Devonshire 354
Martin Pearlman 351
Square Sausage 346
Chris Watts 335
FAM147 324
Kim Kristensen 316
Alex Abrahams 309
Markus 307
Debbie Dymott 304
Anthony (antow73) 279
Kelvin Platten 231
Pete Tscherewik 226
Daniel Gavin 216
As aggressive as some players may want to be with their selections for the first double points event of the season, please remember that you can only select a certain player three times over the course of the season. The following is a warnings list for each participant of players they have already picked twice or more:
Kellie Barker: Ding x2, Carter x2, Higgins x2
TungstenDarts: Lisowski x2, Trump x2, O’Sullivan x2
Ryan Duckett: Selby x2, Hawkins x2
Rob Chipp: Ding x2, Robertson x2, Bingham x2, Lisowski x2,
Allen x2
Daniela Reich: N. Robertson x2, M. Williams x2, Brecel x2,
Allen x2
LTD Syndicate: Murphy x2, Carter x2
Phil Mudd: Lisowski x2, O’Sullivan x2
Phil Robinson: O’Sullivan x2, Allen x2
Stephen McCabe: Ding x2
Andy (APB147): Allen x2
FAM147: N. Robertson x2, Allen x2
Daz Muckian: Brecel x3, O’Sullivan x2
Dani M (esnukero): Bingham x2, Trump x2, Allen x2
Steven Bunn: Walden x2, Bingham x2,
Rob Francis: Hawkins x2, Williams x2, O’Sullivan x2, Allen
x3
Matt Butler: Hawkins x2, Allen x2, Ding x2, Day x2
The Cue View: Trump x2
Shaun Hunt: Allen x2
Voihelevettisua: K.Wilson x2, Trump x2, O’Sullivan x2
Munraj Pal: Trump x2, Allen x2
Square Sausage: Allen x2, Hawkins x2
Andrew Devonshire: Trump x3, N. Robertson x3, Hawkins x2
Martin Pearlman: O’Sullivan x2
Chris Watts: Hawkins x2, Selby x2, Allen x2
Kim Kristensen: Ding x2, Trump x2
Markus: Trump x2, Selby x2, O’Sullivan x2, Allen x2
Debbie Dymott: Allen x2, Hawkins x2, Trump x2
Alex Abrahams: Hawkins x2, Ding x2
Anthony (antow73): K. Wilson x2, Day x2, Hawkins x2
Daniel Gavin: Hawkins x2, Williams x2, Lisowski x2
Pete Tscherewik: Robertson x2
Kevin Platten: K. Wilson x2, Williams x2, Robertson x2
David Lilley Interview
Being the number one player on the Q School order of merit is a strange honour to have. Falling agonisingly short of gaining a place on the main tour, but likely to compete in most of the season's ranking events due to non-entries.
This season the man with that curious 'honour' is David Lilley and so far he has made the most of it. Coming into the UK Championships he has won his last 128 tie in five of the six complete ranking tournaments that he has entered.
If he adds another victory to the list in York, Lilley will have caused a major upset by defeating 2011 UK champion and recent Northern Ireland Open winner Judd Trump in what is Lilley's first ever appearance at the UK Championships.
"This may sound a little over the top but it's kind of like a dream come true. I never thought I would get the chance to compete in any professional events a few years ago, never mind the UK Championship, as I thought I'd left it too late, but hard work has paid off and I can't wait to play on Tuesday night", Lilley exclaims.
His first appearance at the UK Championship brings with it the honour of playing in the main arena at the York Barbican on one of the two main tables against one of the game's greats so it's a world of new opportunities for Lilley.
"It's my first time, I've never even been in the York Barbican before so there are new experiences all round".
Not only that but one of Lilley's leading memories from recent York UK Championships features his opponent Trump in one of the classic finals back in 2014.
"The 2014 final between Trump and Ronnie O'Sullivan that finished 10-9. It was a big fightback from Trump before losing the decider. There was some crazy potting and I love it when it goes close and twitchy. I much prefer the twitchy play than the all the centuries and big breaks flying in".
While he is a well-known name in the game and among die-hard fans who follow every snooker event and the amateur scene, the UK Championships offer Lilley and other lesser known players a chance to really make a name for themselves on a bigger stage.
"For me personally the BBC events are all huge. Prize money amount doesn't always dictate the “size” or “importance” of the event. Doing well in BBC events raises your profile especially in the UK. The crowd sizes also appear much bigger and more passionate which adds more to the twitchy play".
With only 127 players currently holding tour cards (with three of those players currently suspended) Lilley will be able to enter any event he wishes throughout the remainder of the season, despite not actually having professional status, but the chance to play and the experience that comes with that is something the 43-year-old has relished.
"I've loved it. I wish I was on the main tour and I'm working hard this year to try and achieve that for the next two seasons. I will be entering every event I can apart from those that clash with the European Amateur Championship (which is in Israel in 2019) or the WSF Championship (in Dubai) both of which the winner gets a tour card. The pro and amateur calendars clash quite a bit so I need to take a close look to ensure I don't miss out on any opportunities".
As mentioned above Lilley has certainly made the most of the opportunities given to him so far. He has won just under 50% of his games played so far this season, with a best finish of the the last 32 of the International Championship. In all he has picked up £19,000 and is 56th on the money list for this season so far, level with Anthony McGill and just behind Shaun Murphy.
"There have been some ups and downs when looking at individual games but on the whole I'm delighted with the season to date. My goals are to achieve a tour card for the 2019/2020 seasons either by achieving that through the one year list (if World Snooker retain that as a qualifying criteria) or via the international events. There a few different ways, I've just got to keep focused on the goal".
In that period Lilley has completed victories over former International Champion Ricky Walden and Ben Woollaston in the International recently, on top of a win over Tom Ford in the English Open, but he insists that every win is pleasing in it's own right.
"I honestly don't have a stand out win. I played well in all of those games and I've deserved the wins. It’s so difficult to get over the line when the games are so close and I’ve been good, at times, in closing out games. That's what I think I've been happy with the most".
The possible catalyst for some of this form may have come as early as two years previously, when Lilley competed at the 2016 Indian Open. In that tournament he picked up wins over Tian Pengfei, Mike Dunn, Mark Williams and Robert Milkins to make the quarter-finals before losing narrowly to Shaun Murphy.
"Financially it was huge, I received £9,000 which basically paid off the Q School debts (that were put on a credit card) for that preceding season, and it also contributed to my snooker expenses over the last 18 months. I've always been quite a confident person and I've tried not to look at who my opponent is and what their reputation is. I remember at the time just telling myself to play the table and not the person. Getting to the quarter-finals in my first ever pro competition gave me so much belief and confidence and I keep going back to those memories when I've got a pro qualifier coming up".
From there he was so close to taking the next step and earning his pro card at this summer's Qualifying School in Burton. In the three events he lost in the penultimate round each time, first to Sam Craigie, then Micthell Mann (both of whom had just dropped off the tour) and then to Simon Bedford, but Lilley believes it did not take much getting over.
"It didn't hurt too much as I thought I would still get through (until the last event of course). It took me about an hour to get over it as I try not dwell on things. I think I went for a beer with my wife after the drive home from Burton, and tried to think of the positives, such as being number 1 on the order of merit and getting the chance to compete in some events. I didn't beat myself up too much".
Losing to two players that had just dropped off the tour raises the question once more of how much of an advantage players in that situation have over other amateurs, because of the familiarity with the tables and playing conditions, a point which Lilley backs up.
"This year I've learned that playing and competing regularly on the STAR tables is a massive advantage to those that aren’t. That's the biggest difference I think. From an ability perspective I don't think there is that big of a gap between those dropping off and those trying to get on. 'Know how', self belief and adapting to the pressure situations is what makes the difference".
The next target for Lilley though is to make his experiences of playing on Star tables this season count by securing his tour card before or during the 2019 Q School.
"I'd like to think so but I'm hoping not to have to endure Q School. I'll be trying my socks off to achieve a tour card beforehand but if I have to go through Q School again then so be it. Its a tough gig and not an easy place to compete. The warm weather last year made the playing conditions really difficult".
Lilley has also filled the gaps between pro competitions by playing in anything he can and that has included some appearances on the newly formed Challenge Tour, which as well as offering two tour cards after the last of 10 events this season, also provides valuable playing time to non-tour players, in an attempt to bridge the gap between the pro and amateur circuits.
"From a competing perspective I don't think it can bridge the gap as the Challenge Tour is still amateurs against amateurs just like the Q School. There is a massive gap when you play on the main tour there's no doubt about it, but at the moment the only way to bridge the gap is to learn on the job when you’re on the main tour and hopefully try to get a few wins early to get the confidence up. Then take it from there".
From the Challenge Tour events that Lilley has been involved in, he has managed to pick up one of the titles and the £2,000 first prize that goes with each event. With victories over ex-tour pros in Mitchell Mann and Sydney Wilson over the quarter and semi-finals, before a victory in the final against Brandon Sargeant (who has made at least the semi-finals in five of the seven CT events this season) Lilley claimed victory in the fifth event of the Challenge Tour run.
"I was delighted with the win and I’m aiming to try and win each of the last three events to ensure I get automatic tour qualification. It's not unachievable but it will be difficult to win all three. I'm kicking myself I missed three events earlier in the season".
Another tour which Lilley is a part of is the English Amateur tour, where he won the first event in the EA season, before finishing as a runner-up in the second to Simon Bedford. With criticism in the game that English amateur players are not coming through at the same rate as their Chinese counterparts, it was interesting to get Lilley's insider opinion.
"I haven't really heard statements like this but I do see lots of young men and women getting coaching in the local clubs which is great to see. The EASB are doing their best to encourage grass roots snooker which is there for all to see too. There are coaching clubs all over the UK but I don't think I could name any young players as I'm not that close to it. From a challenge tour perspective I think Brandon Sargeant is a young lad doing well".
Finally, Lilley has outlined his goals for the rest of the season and his masterplan to finally gain a full professional tour card.
"My plans are to continue to practice and compete in every event I can. My target is to achieve a tour card whether that be via an international comp (European Championships or the WSF Championship), the Challenge Tour, by my performances on main tour or Q School. One last thing I’d like to mention are my sponsors GoSkippy Insurance and Gateshead Snooker Centre. I wouldn't be able to compete in these events without their support and I want to say a big thanks to them for helping me out and giving me this opportunity".
I'd like to wish David all the best for his upcoming match against Judd Trump in the last 128 of the UK Championship which is coming up on Tuesday November 27 at 7.30pm UK time and will be available to watch live on the Eurosport Player, as Lilley aims to pull off an upset.
This season the man with that curious 'honour' is David Lilley and so far he has made the most of it. Coming into the UK Championships he has won his last 128 tie in five of the six complete ranking tournaments that he has entered.
If he adds another victory to the list in York, Lilley will have caused a major upset by defeating 2011 UK champion and recent Northern Ireland Open winner Judd Trump in what is Lilley's first ever appearance at the UK Championships.
"This may sound a little over the top but it's kind of like a dream come true. I never thought I would get the chance to compete in any professional events a few years ago, never mind the UK Championship, as I thought I'd left it too late, but hard work has paid off and I can't wait to play on Tuesday night", Lilley exclaims.
His first appearance at the UK Championship brings with it the honour of playing in the main arena at the York Barbican on one of the two main tables against one of the game's greats so it's a world of new opportunities for Lilley.
"It's my first time, I've never even been in the York Barbican before so there are new experiences all round".
Not only that but one of Lilley's leading memories from recent York UK Championships features his opponent Trump in one of the classic finals back in 2014.
"The 2014 final between Trump and Ronnie O'Sullivan that finished 10-9. It was a big fightback from Trump before losing the decider. There was some crazy potting and I love it when it goes close and twitchy. I much prefer the twitchy play than the all the centuries and big breaks flying in".
While he is a well-known name in the game and among die-hard fans who follow every snooker event and the amateur scene, the UK Championships offer Lilley and other lesser known players a chance to really make a name for themselves on a bigger stage.
"For me personally the BBC events are all huge. Prize money amount doesn't always dictate the “size” or “importance” of the event. Doing well in BBC events raises your profile especially in the UK. The crowd sizes also appear much bigger and more passionate which adds more to the twitchy play".
With only 127 players currently holding tour cards (with three of those players currently suspended) Lilley will be able to enter any event he wishes throughout the remainder of the season, despite not actually having professional status, but the chance to play and the experience that comes with that is something the 43-year-old has relished.
"I've loved it. I wish I was on the main tour and I'm working hard this year to try and achieve that for the next two seasons. I will be entering every event I can apart from those that clash with the European Amateur Championship (which is in Israel in 2019) or the WSF Championship (in Dubai) both of which the winner gets a tour card. The pro and amateur calendars clash quite a bit so I need to take a close look to ensure I don't miss out on any opportunities".
As mentioned above Lilley has certainly made the most of the opportunities given to him so far. He has won just under 50% of his games played so far this season, with a best finish of the the last 32 of the International Championship. In all he has picked up £19,000 and is 56th on the money list for this season so far, level with Anthony McGill and just behind Shaun Murphy.
"There have been some ups and downs when looking at individual games but on the whole I'm delighted with the season to date. My goals are to achieve a tour card for the 2019/2020 seasons either by achieving that through the one year list (if World Snooker retain that as a qualifying criteria) or via the international events. There a few different ways, I've just got to keep focused on the goal".
In that period Lilley has completed victories over former International Champion Ricky Walden and Ben Woollaston in the International recently, on top of a win over Tom Ford in the English Open, but he insists that every win is pleasing in it's own right.
"I honestly don't have a stand out win. I played well in all of those games and I've deserved the wins. It’s so difficult to get over the line when the games are so close and I’ve been good, at times, in closing out games. That's what I think I've been happy with the most".
The possible catalyst for some of this form may have come as early as two years previously, when Lilley competed at the 2016 Indian Open. In that tournament he picked up wins over Tian Pengfei, Mike Dunn, Mark Williams and Robert Milkins to make the quarter-finals before losing narrowly to Shaun Murphy.
"Financially it was huge, I received £9,000 which basically paid off the Q School debts (that were put on a credit card) for that preceding season, and it also contributed to my snooker expenses over the last 18 months. I've always been quite a confident person and I've tried not to look at who my opponent is and what their reputation is. I remember at the time just telling myself to play the table and not the person. Getting to the quarter-finals in my first ever pro competition gave me so much belief and confidence and I keep going back to those memories when I've got a pro qualifier coming up".
From there he was so close to taking the next step and earning his pro card at this summer's Qualifying School in Burton. In the three events he lost in the penultimate round each time, first to Sam Craigie, then Micthell Mann (both of whom had just dropped off the tour) and then to Simon Bedford, but Lilley believes it did not take much getting over.
"It didn't hurt too much as I thought I would still get through (until the last event of course). It took me about an hour to get over it as I try not dwell on things. I think I went for a beer with my wife after the drive home from Burton, and tried to think of the positives, such as being number 1 on the order of merit and getting the chance to compete in some events. I didn't beat myself up too much".
Losing to two players that had just dropped off the tour raises the question once more of how much of an advantage players in that situation have over other amateurs, because of the familiarity with the tables and playing conditions, a point which Lilley backs up.
"This year I've learned that playing and competing regularly on the STAR tables is a massive advantage to those that aren’t. That's the biggest difference I think. From an ability perspective I don't think there is that big of a gap between those dropping off and those trying to get on. 'Know how', self belief and adapting to the pressure situations is what makes the difference".
The next target for Lilley though is to make his experiences of playing on Star tables this season count by securing his tour card before or during the 2019 Q School.
"I'd like to think so but I'm hoping not to have to endure Q School. I'll be trying my socks off to achieve a tour card beforehand but if I have to go through Q School again then so be it. Its a tough gig and not an easy place to compete. The warm weather last year made the playing conditions really difficult".
Lilley has also filled the gaps between pro competitions by playing in anything he can and that has included some appearances on the newly formed Challenge Tour, which as well as offering two tour cards after the last of 10 events this season, also provides valuable playing time to non-tour players, in an attempt to bridge the gap between the pro and amateur circuits.
"From a competing perspective I don't think it can bridge the gap as the Challenge Tour is still amateurs against amateurs just like the Q School. There is a massive gap when you play on the main tour there's no doubt about it, but at the moment the only way to bridge the gap is to learn on the job when you’re on the main tour and hopefully try to get a few wins early to get the confidence up. Then take it from there".
From the Challenge Tour events that Lilley has been involved in, he has managed to pick up one of the titles and the £2,000 first prize that goes with each event. With victories over ex-tour pros in Mitchell Mann and Sydney Wilson over the quarter and semi-finals, before a victory in the final against Brandon Sargeant (who has made at least the semi-finals in five of the seven CT events this season) Lilley claimed victory in the fifth event of the Challenge Tour run.
"I was delighted with the win and I’m aiming to try and win each of the last three events to ensure I get automatic tour qualification. It's not unachievable but it will be difficult to win all three. I'm kicking myself I missed three events earlier in the season".
Another tour which Lilley is a part of is the English Amateur tour, where he won the first event in the EA season, before finishing as a runner-up in the second to Simon Bedford. With criticism in the game that English amateur players are not coming through at the same rate as their Chinese counterparts, it was interesting to get Lilley's insider opinion.
"I haven't really heard statements like this but I do see lots of young men and women getting coaching in the local clubs which is great to see. The EASB are doing their best to encourage grass roots snooker which is there for all to see too. There are coaching clubs all over the UK but I don't think I could name any young players as I'm not that close to it. From a challenge tour perspective I think Brandon Sargeant is a young lad doing well".
Finally, Lilley has outlined his goals for the rest of the season and his masterplan to finally gain a full professional tour card.
"My plans are to continue to practice and compete in every event I can. My target is to achieve a tour card whether that be via an international comp (European Championships or the WSF Championship), the Challenge Tour, by my performances on main tour or Q School. One last thing I’d like to mention are my sponsors GoSkippy Insurance and Gateshead Snooker Centre. I wouldn't be able to compete in these events without their support and I want to say a big thanks to them for helping me out and giving me this opportunity".
I'd like to wish David all the best for his upcoming match against Judd Trump in the last 128 of the UK Championship which is coming up on Tuesday November 27 at 7.30pm UK time and will be available to watch live on the Eurosport Player, as Lilley aims to pull off an upset.
Thursday, 15 November 2018
Ronnie O'Sullivan continues strong form to make Northern Ireland quarter-finals
Ronnie O'Sullivan has continued his good run of form to breeze into the quarter-finals of the Northern Ireland Open after two comfortable wins on day four in Belfast.
First in the afternoon's last 32 action he whitewashed Tom Ford with breaks of 51, 62 and 79 though Ford had his chances in that contest and O'Sullivan was not at his complete best. That set up a last 16 tie in the evening with Zhou Yuelong, who had beaten Michael Holt on a re-spotted black in the deciding frame of their last 32 encounter.
Zhou started well by taking the opening frame but would only score another two points in the next three frames as O'Sullivan hit top form. A run of 83 in the second frame was followed by an excellent 132 in the fourth to put him 3-1 ahead. Zhou had chances in the fifth to extend the match, but O'Sullivan won the match after an extremely brave and well-executed pot on the black into the right middle pocket.
Also through to the last eight is the world number one Mark Selby. The Englishman was an easy 4-0 winner in the last 32 against Pakistan's Hamza Akbar who offered little resistance to Selby's strong form. Selby opened up with a break of 86 before making his first century of the match, a 101, in frame two. Akbar had a decent chance in the third but a break of 67 from Selby put him within one of a victory that he would soon seal courtesy of an excellent 122 break.
That put him into a last 16 tie with Martin O'Donnell who was looking for his third quarter-final of the season. O'Donnell came from snookers required to win the first frame on a re-spotted black, though Selby took the next three frames to move 3-1 ahead with contributions of 63, 66 and 81. O'Donnell kept himself in the tie by winning the fifth frame but a closing run of 57 from Selby ensured his place in the quarter-finals.
There were two big name casualties on the day as Neil Robertson and Ali Carter bowed out. Robertson was unable to curb his trait of slow starts and failed to recover on this occasion, falling 4-0 in the last 32 to Li Hang who would ultimately then lose 4-1 to Peter Ebdon, who also overcame English Open runner-up Mark Davis 4-1 in the last 32 on the way to booking his quarter-final place.
Ebdon will now play Eden Sharav who backed up his 4-2 win over Joe Swail, a win that ended the hopes of the final home player left in the tournament, by defeating Ali Carter in a deciding frame. Carter had beaten Xiao Guodong in the last 32 and looked set for a spot in the quarters when he took a 3-1 lead on Sharav. The sixth frame proved a big blow for Carter after he opened up with a break of 56, before Sharav cleared with 67 to force the decider which he would end up winning comfortably.
Judd Trump saw off two strong names to book his place in the quarter-finals on Friday. Trump opened the day with a whitewash win over his good friend Jack Lisowski who was unable to bring the sort of form that took him to the semi-finals of the recent International Championship, while Trump had high breaks of 57 and 112 in the contest.
He got a much greater fight from Belgium's Luca Brecel, but ultimately the former China Championship winner was unable to reach his first ranking event quarter-final of 2018. Trump opened with a break of 71 but was soon 2-1 down after Brecel cleared to win the second on the black and followed that with a fine 82 in the third. From there though, Brecel would fail to trouble the scorers as Trump registered 316 unanswered points including a break of 115 as well as two 51 breaks to clinch a 4-2 win.
Trump will now face Ryan Day, the man who put him out of the English Open at the last 16 stage. Day was very fortunate to overcome Robin Hull in the last 32 on Thursday morning. Hull won each of the first, third and fifth frames to ensure Day would not lead at any stage until winning the deciding frame. After missing a simple red on virtually match ball, Day left Hull the chance to clear but he snookered himself on the final red which would end up costing him the match. Things were much more comfortable in the evening as the Welshman whitewashed Andrew Higginson compiling breaks of 62, 63, 69 and 73 in the process.
The final two quarter-finalists are Thepchaiya Un-Nooh, who lost just one frame from his matches against Chris Totten and Robbie Williams, making breaks of 65, 74 and a high break tying 145 against Totten, before a sublime spell of form against Williams that included breaks of 138, 104, 99 and 65 in a match that lasted just 37 minutes. David Gilbert is the other after defeating Matthew Stevens 4-2 in the last 32 prior to a 4-0 whitewash of Lu Ning.
Last 32 results:
Ali Carter 4-2 Xiao Guodong
Eden Sharav 4-2 Joe Swail
Li Hang 4-0 Neil Robertson
Peter Ebdon 4-1 Mark Davis
Judd Trump 4-0 Jack Lisowski
Luca Brecel 4-2 Gary Wilson
Ryan Day 4-3 Robin Hull
Andrew Higginson 4-2 Billy Castle
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-0 Tom Ford
Zhou Yuelong 4-3 Michael Holt
Lu Ning 4-2 Hammad Miah
David Gilbert 4-2 Matthew Stevens
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 4-1 Chris Totten
Robbie Williams 4-1 Sanderson Lam
Martin O'Donnell 4-1 Scott Donaldson
Mark Selby 4-0 Hamza Akbar
Last 16 results:
Eden Sharav 4-3 Ali Carter
Peter Ebdon 4-1 Li Hang
Judd Trump 4-2 Luca Brecel
Ryan Day 4-0 Andrew Higginson
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-1 Zhou Yuelong
David Gilbert 4-0 Lu Ning
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 4-0 Robbie Williams
Mark Selby 4-2 Martin O'Donnell
Quarter-Final draw: (Picks in bold)
Peter Ebdon Vs Eden Sharav
Judd Trump Vs Ryan Day
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs David Gilbert
Mark Selby Vs Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
The first quarter-final on Friday will be that of Mark Selby against Thepchaiya Un-Nooh in what should be a great match. Selby looks to have really hit his stride this week with some high scoring and pretty comfortable victories. So far he has beaten Anthony Hamilton, Jimmy Robertson, Hamza Akbar and Martin O'Donnell for the loss of just three frames and he's cueing so sweetly that the possibility of a Selby Vs O'Sullivan semi-final is of great appeal. Thepchiaya will have something to say about that though. The Thai has only lost one frame all week in victories over Robert Milkins, Ross Muir, Chris Totten and Robbie Williams. He has the joint high break of 145, and won a match in 37 minutes with two further centuries and a break of 99 included in there. He showed some signs of this form in the English Open with a maximum break early in the week before losing a tight last 32 clash against Stuart Bingham and I expect him to give Selby as tight a game in this one.
Next up will be Judd Trump and Ryan Day. These two met recently at the English Open and Day was in sublime form in winning that one but would go on to lose in the quarter-finals, just as he had done at the European Masters, so he will be looking to put those defeats behind him and march on here. Day has survived two massive scares this week, coming from behind to beat Zhang Anda in the last 64 and getting a huge slice of luck against Robin Hull to win that one in a decider. Trump meanwhile has had some tough opponents but has still only dropped four frames in his four matches and looks to have been inspired by some of the comments made about him after his loss to Kyren Wilson in the Champion of Champions. It is tough to say that someone who has won as much as Trump already has, has something to prove, but comparisons between him and Wilson have been made and comments in his one of his post-match interviews this week would lead you to believe that he thinks he is miles better than Wilson and he is determined to show that in Belfast.
Then in the evening, Ronnie O'Sullivan will face his toughest match of the week so far against David Gilbert. O'Sullivan has had a simple passage to the quarter-finals this week, losing just two frames in his matches against Soheil Vahedi, Mei Xiwen, Tom Ford and Zhou Yuelong and at times he has not even been that close to his best. That should have helped him to conserve a bit of energy ahead of the final push this weekend, having just won the Champion of Champions in Coventry. Gilbert meanwhile has overcome Fergal O'Brien, Chen Zifan, Matthew Stevens and Lu Ning as he looks to force himself into contention for a Masters spot. There would be no better way of signalling his Masters credentials by beating O'Sullivan and it is worth remembering that Gilbert pushed him hard at the Crucible in 2016, though he has never beaten the Rocket thus far in his career. After his run to the World Open final he should have more confidence to make a win here possible, but O'Sullivan still has a couple of unused gears that he could move up into if Gilbert starts to push him.
The final quarter-final, that will be played on table two in the evening and broadcast solely on the Eurosport Player, features Eden Sharav and Peter Ebdon. This will be the first meeting between these two players and the first ranking quarter-final in Sharav's career so a big day lies ahead for him. Ebdon meanwhile is showing similar form to the Paul Hunter Classic at the end of August where he reached the final. Sharav is in good form too and was only denied by O'Sullivan at the last 16 stage of the English Open and has beaten the likes of Carter and Michael White this week as well as defeating Stuart Bingham in the International Championship. Ebdon though has scored really well this week also and has defeated Lee Walker (who overcame Kyren Wilson), English Open runner-up Mark Davis and Li Hang (who had whitewashed Neil Robertson earlier in the day). It is great to see him still challenging at the latter stages of competitions at the age of 48 and this extra bit of experience in the latter stages of tournaments could be a decisive factor, particularly if Sharav shows any early nerves.
All of the quarter-final matches will be played over the best-of-9 frames, with places in the best-of-11 semi-finals up for grabs.
First in the afternoon's last 32 action he whitewashed Tom Ford with breaks of 51, 62 and 79 though Ford had his chances in that contest and O'Sullivan was not at his complete best. That set up a last 16 tie in the evening with Zhou Yuelong, who had beaten Michael Holt on a re-spotted black in the deciding frame of their last 32 encounter.
Zhou started well by taking the opening frame but would only score another two points in the next three frames as O'Sullivan hit top form. A run of 83 in the second frame was followed by an excellent 132 in the fourth to put him 3-1 ahead. Zhou had chances in the fifth to extend the match, but O'Sullivan won the match after an extremely brave and well-executed pot on the black into the right middle pocket.
Also through to the last eight is the world number one Mark Selby. The Englishman was an easy 4-0 winner in the last 32 against Pakistan's Hamza Akbar who offered little resistance to Selby's strong form. Selby opened up with a break of 86 before making his first century of the match, a 101, in frame two. Akbar had a decent chance in the third but a break of 67 from Selby put him within one of a victory that he would soon seal courtesy of an excellent 122 break.
That put him into a last 16 tie with Martin O'Donnell who was looking for his third quarter-final of the season. O'Donnell came from snookers required to win the first frame on a re-spotted black, though Selby took the next three frames to move 3-1 ahead with contributions of 63, 66 and 81. O'Donnell kept himself in the tie by winning the fifth frame but a closing run of 57 from Selby ensured his place in the quarter-finals.
There were two big name casualties on the day as Neil Robertson and Ali Carter bowed out. Robertson was unable to curb his trait of slow starts and failed to recover on this occasion, falling 4-0 in the last 32 to Li Hang who would ultimately then lose 4-1 to Peter Ebdon, who also overcame English Open runner-up Mark Davis 4-1 in the last 32 on the way to booking his quarter-final place.
Ebdon will now play Eden Sharav who backed up his 4-2 win over Joe Swail, a win that ended the hopes of the final home player left in the tournament, by defeating Ali Carter in a deciding frame. Carter had beaten Xiao Guodong in the last 32 and looked set for a spot in the quarters when he took a 3-1 lead on Sharav. The sixth frame proved a big blow for Carter after he opened up with a break of 56, before Sharav cleared with 67 to force the decider which he would end up winning comfortably.
Judd Trump saw off two strong names to book his place in the quarter-finals on Friday. Trump opened the day with a whitewash win over his good friend Jack Lisowski who was unable to bring the sort of form that took him to the semi-finals of the recent International Championship, while Trump had high breaks of 57 and 112 in the contest.
He got a much greater fight from Belgium's Luca Brecel, but ultimately the former China Championship winner was unable to reach his first ranking event quarter-final of 2018. Trump opened with a break of 71 but was soon 2-1 down after Brecel cleared to win the second on the black and followed that with a fine 82 in the third. From there though, Brecel would fail to trouble the scorers as Trump registered 316 unanswered points including a break of 115 as well as two 51 breaks to clinch a 4-2 win.
Trump will now face Ryan Day, the man who put him out of the English Open at the last 16 stage. Day was very fortunate to overcome Robin Hull in the last 32 on Thursday morning. Hull won each of the first, third and fifth frames to ensure Day would not lead at any stage until winning the deciding frame. After missing a simple red on virtually match ball, Day left Hull the chance to clear but he snookered himself on the final red which would end up costing him the match. Things were much more comfortable in the evening as the Welshman whitewashed Andrew Higginson compiling breaks of 62, 63, 69 and 73 in the process.
The final two quarter-finalists are Thepchaiya Un-Nooh, who lost just one frame from his matches against Chris Totten and Robbie Williams, making breaks of 65, 74 and a high break tying 145 against Totten, before a sublime spell of form against Williams that included breaks of 138, 104, 99 and 65 in a match that lasted just 37 minutes. David Gilbert is the other after defeating Matthew Stevens 4-2 in the last 32 prior to a 4-0 whitewash of Lu Ning.
Last 32 results:
Ali Carter 4-2 Xiao Guodong
Eden Sharav 4-2 Joe Swail
Li Hang 4-0 Neil Robertson
Peter Ebdon 4-1 Mark Davis
Judd Trump 4-0 Jack Lisowski
Luca Brecel 4-2 Gary Wilson
Ryan Day 4-3 Robin Hull
Andrew Higginson 4-2 Billy Castle
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-0 Tom Ford
Zhou Yuelong 4-3 Michael Holt
Lu Ning 4-2 Hammad Miah
David Gilbert 4-2 Matthew Stevens
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 4-1 Chris Totten
Robbie Williams 4-1 Sanderson Lam
Martin O'Donnell 4-1 Scott Donaldson
Mark Selby 4-0 Hamza Akbar
Last 16 results:
Eden Sharav 4-3 Ali Carter
Peter Ebdon 4-1 Li Hang
Judd Trump 4-2 Luca Brecel
Ryan Day 4-0 Andrew Higginson
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-1 Zhou Yuelong
David Gilbert 4-0 Lu Ning
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 4-0 Robbie Williams
Mark Selby 4-2 Martin O'Donnell
Quarter-Final draw: (Picks in bold)
Peter Ebdon Vs Eden Sharav
Judd Trump Vs Ryan Day
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs David Gilbert
Mark Selby Vs Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
The first quarter-final on Friday will be that of Mark Selby against Thepchaiya Un-Nooh in what should be a great match. Selby looks to have really hit his stride this week with some high scoring and pretty comfortable victories. So far he has beaten Anthony Hamilton, Jimmy Robertson, Hamza Akbar and Martin O'Donnell for the loss of just three frames and he's cueing so sweetly that the possibility of a Selby Vs O'Sullivan semi-final is of great appeal. Thepchiaya will have something to say about that though. The Thai has only lost one frame all week in victories over Robert Milkins, Ross Muir, Chris Totten and Robbie Williams. He has the joint high break of 145, and won a match in 37 minutes with two further centuries and a break of 99 included in there. He showed some signs of this form in the English Open with a maximum break early in the week before losing a tight last 32 clash against Stuart Bingham and I expect him to give Selby as tight a game in this one.
Next up will be Judd Trump and Ryan Day. These two met recently at the English Open and Day was in sublime form in winning that one but would go on to lose in the quarter-finals, just as he had done at the European Masters, so he will be looking to put those defeats behind him and march on here. Day has survived two massive scares this week, coming from behind to beat Zhang Anda in the last 64 and getting a huge slice of luck against Robin Hull to win that one in a decider. Trump meanwhile has had some tough opponents but has still only dropped four frames in his four matches and looks to have been inspired by some of the comments made about him after his loss to Kyren Wilson in the Champion of Champions. It is tough to say that someone who has won as much as Trump already has, has something to prove, but comparisons between him and Wilson have been made and comments in his one of his post-match interviews this week would lead you to believe that he thinks he is miles better than Wilson and he is determined to show that in Belfast.
Then in the evening, Ronnie O'Sullivan will face his toughest match of the week so far against David Gilbert. O'Sullivan has had a simple passage to the quarter-finals this week, losing just two frames in his matches against Soheil Vahedi, Mei Xiwen, Tom Ford and Zhou Yuelong and at times he has not even been that close to his best. That should have helped him to conserve a bit of energy ahead of the final push this weekend, having just won the Champion of Champions in Coventry. Gilbert meanwhile has overcome Fergal O'Brien, Chen Zifan, Matthew Stevens and Lu Ning as he looks to force himself into contention for a Masters spot. There would be no better way of signalling his Masters credentials by beating O'Sullivan and it is worth remembering that Gilbert pushed him hard at the Crucible in 2016, though he has never beaten the Rocket thus far in his career. After his run to the World Open final he should have more confidence to make a win here possible, but O'Sullivan still has a couple of unused gears that he could move up into if Gilbert starts to push him.
The final quarter-final, that will be played on table two in the evening and broadcast solely on the Eurosport Player, features Eden Sharav and Peter Ebdon. This will be the first meeting between these two players and the first ranking quarter-final in Sharav's career so a big day lies ahead for him. Ebdon meanwhile is showing similar form to the Paul Hunter Classic at the end of August where he reached the final. Sharav is in good form too and was only denied by O'Sullivan at the last 16 stage of the English Open and has beaten the likes of Carter and Michael White this week as well as defeating Stuart Bingham in the International Championship. Ebdon though has scored really well this week also and has defeated Lee Walker (who overcame Kyren Wilson), English Open runner-up Mark Davis and Li Hang (who had whitewashed Neil Robertson earlier in the day). It is great to see him still challenging at the latter stages of competitions at the age of 48 and this extra bit of experience in the latter stages of tournaments could be a decisive factor, particularly if Sharav shows any early nerves.
All of the quarter-final matches will be played over the best-of-9 frames, with places in the best-of-11 semi-finals up for grabs.
Wednesday, 14 November 2018
Ali Carter defeats Mark Williams in Northern Ireland Open last 64
Defending Northern Ireland Open champion Mark Williams has been defeated at the last 64 stage in Belfast after Ali Carter came from 3-1 down to defeat Williams 4-3.
Carter is the 17th seed so the pair can count themselves unlucky to be meeting in the second round of a tournament but it seemed as though things would go the way of the World champion until he missed a simple enough red when he was in to win the match 4-1. Carter went on to win that frame and Williams never recovered as his poor form continued to end his defence early. Next up for the Welshman is the UK Championships in York.
Ronnie O'Sullivan did make it through comfortably 4-1 against Mei Xiwen. That was despite O'Sullivan looking quite erratic in parts and not looking at his best. Mei failed to take advantage though and let O'Sullivan off the hook on far too many occasions to have any chance of winning matches against players at that level.
World number one Mark Selby though was flawless in his defeat of Jimmy Robertson in the second round. The European Masters champion Robertson actually ended the 4-0 defeat with a pot success of 100% having not actually missed a ball, but also hardly being given a chance by Selby's exceptional play that saw him close the match with a pot success of 98%. Selby would compile breaks of 128, 127 and 90 in the final frames to make a big statement, especially given the amount of top players that have exited the tournament early on.
Neil Robertson was just about able to avoid an early exit for the second night running. Having come from 3-1 down to defeat Ben Woollaston in the last 128, this time he had to turn things around from 3-0 down to defeat Norway's Kurt Maflin in a final frame decider, making his one chance in the decider count with a break of 125 to complete a magnificent comeback.
Ryan Day also turned things around, coming from 3-1 down to defeat Zhang Anda 4-3 in a high scoring encounter. Zhang had made breaks of 64, 93 and 100 to go 3-1 up before back-to-back tons of 140 and 126 from Day forced the decider, which he would then win with a run of 70.
Judd Trump was on high scoring form as he whitewashed Stuart Carrington in less than an hour, opening up with a 137 before further breaks of 51, 53, 55 and a closing 69. Luca Brecel was also a 4-0 winner in his match against Ian Burns, while Jack Lisowski held on to beat Liam Highfield 4-3 having previously led 3-1 and missing match ball to win the match a frame earlier.
2016 Northern Ireland Open champion Mark King is out though as Michael Holt came from 2-0 behind to defeat King in a final frame decider, while the last remaining Northern Irish player is Joe Swail who booked his place in the last 64 with victory over Nigel Bond while Gerard Greene lost to Matthew Stevens.
Last 64 results:
Ali Carter 4-3 Mark Williams
Xiao Guodong 4-3 Akani Songsermsawad
Joe Swail 4-2 Nigel Bond
Eden Sharav 4-2 Michael White
Li Hang 4-2 Sam Craigie
Neil Robertson 4-3 Kurt Maflin
Mark Davis 4-1 Luo Honghao
Peter Ebdon 4-3 Lee Walker
Judd Trump 4-0 Stuart Carrington
Jack Lisowski 4-3 Liam Highfield
Luca Brecel 4-0 Ian Burns
Gary Wilson 4-3 Daniel Wells
Ryan Day 4-3 Zhang Anda
Robin Hull 4-1 Tian Pengfei
Andrew Higginson 4-3 Yuan Sijun
Billy Castle 4-1 Rory McLeod
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-1 Mei Xiwen
Tom Ford 4-3 Chris Wakelin
Michael Holt 4-3 Mark King
Zhou Yuelong 4-0 Kishan Hirani
Lu Ning 4-1 Alan McManus
Hammad Miah 4-0 Niu Zhuang
Matthew Stevens 4-1 Gerard Greene
David Gilbert 4-2 Chen Zifan
Chris Totten 4-3 Sam Baird
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 4-0 Ross Muir
Robbie Williams 4-2 Peter Lines
Sanderson Lam 4-3 Sean O'Sullivan
Scott Donaldson 4-2 David Lilley
Martin O'Donnell 4-1 Chen Feilong
Hamza Akbar 4-3 Alexander Ursenbacher
Mark Selby 4-0 Jimmy Robertson
Xiao Guodong 4-3 Akani Songsermsawad
Joe Swail 4-2 Nigel Bond
Eden Sharav 4-2 Michael White
Li Hang 4-2 Sam Craigie
Neil Robertson 4-3 Kurt Maflin
Mark Davis 4-1 Luo Honghao
Peter Ebdon 4-3 Lee Walker
Judd Trump 4-0 Stuart Carrington
Jack Lisowski 4-3 Liam Highfield
Luca Brecel 4-0 Ian Burns
Gary Wilson 4-3 Daniel Wells
Ryan Day 4-3 Zhang Anda
Robin Hull 4-1 Tian Pengfei
Andrew Higginson 4-3 Yuan Sijun
Billy Castle 4-1 Rory McLeod
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-1 Mei Xiwen
Tom Ford 4-3 Chris Wakelin
Michael Holt 4-3 Mark King
Zhou Yuelong 4-0 Kishan Hirani
Lu Ning 4-1 Alan McManus
Hammad Miah 4-0 Niu Zhuang
Matthew Stevens 4-1 Gerard Greene
David Gilbert 4-2 Chen Zifan
Chris Totten 4-3 Sam Baird
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 4-0 Ross Muir
Robbie Williams 4-2 Peter Lines
Sanderson Lam 4-3 Sean O'Sullivan
Scott Donaldson 4-2 David Lilley
Martin O'Donnell 4-1 Chen Feilong
Hamza Akbar 4-3 Alexander Ursenbacher
Mark Selby 4-0 Jimmy Robertson
Last 32 draw: (Picks in bold)
Ali Carter Vs Xiao Guodong
Eden Sharav Vs Joe Swail
Neil Robertson Vs Li Hang
Mark Davis Vs Peter Ebdon
Judd Trump Vs Jack Lisowski
Luca Brecel Vs Gary Wilson
Ryan Day Vs Robin Hull
Andrew Higginson Vs Billy Castle
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs Tom Ford
Zhou Yuelong Vs Michael Holt
Hammad Miah Vs Lu Ning
David Gilbert Vs Matthew Stevens
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh Vs Chris Totten
Robbie Williams Vs Sanderson Lam
Scott Donaldson Vs Martin O'Donnell
Mark Selby Vs Hamza Akbar
Eden Sharav Vs Joe Swail
Neil Robertson Vs Li Hang
Mark Davis Vs Peter Ebdon
Judd Trump Vs Jack Lisowski
Luca Brecel Vs Gary Wilson
Ryan Day Vs Robin Hull
Andrew Higginson Vs Billy Castle
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs Tom Ford
Zhou Yuelong Vs Michael Holt
Hammad Miah Vs Lu Ning
David Gilbert Vs Matthew Stevens
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh Vs Chris Totten
Robbie Williams Vs Sanderson Lam
Scott Donaldson Vs Martin O'Donnell
Mark Selby Vs Hamza Akbar
The big name exits have not left us short of intriguing matches in the draw. The first that jumps out is that of comeback king Neil Robertson against Li Hang. Robertson has started slowly this week, falling 3-1 behind to Ben Woollaston and 3-0 down to Kurt Maflin before coming through, but you have to believe his luck will eventually run out if he keeps leaving himself that much to do in matches. Li was 2-0 down in the last 64 to Sam Craigie before a barrage of breaks saw him come through 4-2, making the new high break of the week - a 145 - in the process. Given his two great comebacks though I expect Robertson to now kick on and have a big run again this week having just made the International Championship final.
For the third event in a row, Jack Lisowski will face off with Judd Trump. These two being as friendly as they are cannot be enjoying the fact that they keep having to play each other, but that is the way the draw has kept panning out. In the last 32 at the English Open, Trump turned around a poor start to come through, but he could not do the same at the International Championship where Lisowski ultimately won comfortably. I believe that Lisowski is going to win a ranking title sooner rather than later and if he can beat Trump in this one, the possibility of this being his week to do so becomes very realistic. Lisowski has looked a bit more loose in the first couple of rounds than Trump, but form almost goes out of the window when these two come up against each other, because they know they have to raise their games.
Ryan Day will meet Finland's Robin Hull at this stage of the Northern Ireland Open for the second year in succession. Aside from Hull's victory over Day on the way to his 2016 Snooker Shoot-Out victory, the pair have met twice, with Day winning in deciders while Hull could have won both matches quite easily. In the 2017 German Masters last 16, Hull was 3-0 up to Day before the Welshman won 5-4, while in this event 12 months ago the Finn took a 3-1 lead before Day again turned things around. Hull has had two nice wins this week and will know that he is more than capable of putting himself in position to beat Day, so perhaps at the third time of asking his luck will change and he will be able to avenge those two previous losses.
Ronnie O'Sullivan's next opponent is Tom Ford. The recent Champion of Champions has had an easy ride this week so far but can expect a tougher challenge against Ford who has overcome Rod Lawler and Chris Wakelin in deciding frames so far this week. Realistically, if Ford does not get a frame on the board early then he will be blown away without a trace, but if he stands up to the pressure of playing O'Sullivan everyone knows that he is capable of pulling off the upset, especially if O'Sullivan's form is as erratic as it was at times against Mei Xiwen.
Michael Holt will be looking for his third victory of the week against someone seeded higher than him in the draw when he faces Zhou Yuelong. Holt was a 4-2 winner on day one against Stephen Maguire before coming from 2-0 down to defeat Mark King and those results will increase his confidence which has probably suffered a little in recent times. Zhou has had two fairly easy matches by comparison against Lukas Kleckers and Kishan Hirani, and while his record against Holt is strong, the Chinese youngster is going to need to be close to his best which he has not been much of late.
David Gilbert takes on Matthew Stevens in another very interesting game. Both of these players are outside of the top 16 but are capable of being at that level and have had success out in China this season. Gilbert was of course a finalist at the World Open and is only just outside of the top 16, a mark he could climb a lot closer to this week given how the draw has opened up. Stevens meanwhile looks to have his form and confidence back after making it to the International Championship semi-finals and looking like his old self. Already this week both players have had tough ties, Gilbert beating Fergal O'Brien in round one while Stevens saw off Ricky Walden 4-3 at the same stage. This match could be just as close and it is tough to give either player the edge.
Mark Selby meanwhile will be a massive favourite after his sublime performance against Jimmy Robertson. He looks to be cueing like a dream, having also beaten Anthony Hamilton 4-1 this week so far and was only denied by Neil Robertson in the last two tournaments, making a 147 against him in the most recent at the Champion of Champions. His third round opponent here is Pakistan's Hamza Akbar who has had two nice victories against Ashley Hugill and Alexander Ursenbacher. Life on tour has been incredibly tough for Akbar with his continuous visa problems, while the opportunities this has taken away have left him low on funds at times so no-one can begrudge him of the £3,500 that he is already guaranteed this week and the chance to play the world number 1 on the main TV table. This is only his second appearance in the last 32 of a ranking event, matching his effort in this year's Shoot-Out. Realistically, his chances against Selby are very slim but in sport these underdog stories are always possible.
All of the last 32 matches will be played over the morning and afternoon sessions on Thursday in Belfast, over the best-of-7 frames, while the last 16 ties will follow on Thursday evening and once again these will be over the best-of-7 frame format which a selection of matches on Eurosport TV and the Eurosport Player throughout the day.
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