Mark Williams comes from the brink to make China Open Quarters

Mark Williams came back from the brink of defeat in the last 16 of the China Open, as Mark Allen missed frame and match ball in the decider to clinch a quarter-final spot and his place at the Crucible.

Allen will now be made to sweat as either Tom Ford or Jack Lisowski could still overtake him if they were to win the tournament, though this would be a maiden ranking title for either player. Williams had led the match 3-0 at one stage but Allen fought back and levelled the match at 4-4. Williams did regain the lead at 5-4 but Allen forced the decider and looked like taking it when he was 62 points ahead in the final frame with just five reds remaining. His miss left Williams right in and the clearance of 67 was no problem for the Welshman.

Williams will now take on defending champion Mark Selby in the quarter-finals after the World Champion completed a comfortable win over Lu Haotian. Selby looks to be peaking just in time for his Crucible defence and he made high breaks of 77, 108 and 118 in defeating Lu 6-1.

Former champion Neil Robertson was also a 6-1 winner against Chinese opposition as he defeated Zhou Yuelong. Robertson opened up with a break of 110 and had further runs of 68, 72 and 74 while Zhou's only frame was secured with the highest break of the match - a 122.

While these two Chinese youngsters exited as did the Chinese number 1 Ding Junhui. For the second year in a row at the China Open Ding was defeated by Kyren Wilson, this time by a 6-5 scoreline. Ding had led 4-2 and lost the seventh frame despite a run of 69. Wilson then kicked on and took the next two as well to lead the match 5-4 with a high break of 111. Ding took the tenth on the colours and held a big lead in the decider but a clearance of 67 from Wilson put him over the line and into a quarter-final with Jack Lisowski.

Cao Yupeng could not keep the home flag flying either, despite at one stage leading Barry Hawkins 5-2 in their last 16 clash. Cao had breaks of 71, 80 and 85 and plenty of chances thereafter but could not get the job done as Hawkins fought back to take the match to the decider. Then a run of 71 from Hawkins, his highest of the match, was enough to put him over the line and complete a sensational win.

In the battle of the former world champions, Stuart Bingham continued his impressive head to head record with Graeme Dott with a 6-2 win that featured a high break of 105. Jack Lisowski defeated Gary Wilson by the same score, despite losing the first two frames, while Tom Ford was also a 6-2 winner against World Snooker Federation champion Luo Honghao.


Last 16 results: 

Mark Selby 6-1 Lu Haotian
Mark Williams 6-5 Mark Allen
Jack Lisowski 6-2 Gary Wilson
Kyren Wilson 6-5 Ding Junhui
Neil Robertson 6-1 Zhou Yuelong
Stuart Bingham 6-2 Graeme Dott
Barry Hawkins 6-5 Cao Yupeng
Tom Ford 6-2 Luo Honghao

Quarter-Final draw: (Picks in bold) 

Mark Selby Vs Mark Williams
Kyren Wilson Vs Jack Lisowski
Neil Robertson Vs Stuart Bingham 
Barry Hawkins Vs Tom Ford


Mark Selby will face Mark Williams in the quarter-finals in what will be their fourth meeting of the season. Williams ran out victorious in the first round of the Masters 6-5 as well as in their last Chinese meeting at the Shanghai Masters. Prior to that though Selby overcame Williams on the way to winning the International Championship in November, for his fourth win in a row against the Welshman at that time. Both players are on fine form this week and Selby particularly is really starting to warm up nicely. If Selby does come through here you would fancy him heavily to go on and win the title as the format extends for the semi-finals and final, with his scoring looking strong. Given the strength of his safety game that is going to make him incredibly tough to beat in Beijing this week.

Jack Lisowski will be looking for his second Chinese semi-final of the season when he takes on Kyren Wilson. Lisowski has breezed into the last eight after a 6-1 win over Anthony Hamilton and 6-2 wins over John Higgins and Gary Wilson. Lisowski has also beaten Wilson earlier on this season in the German Masters qualifiers and has won four of their five previous meetings overall. Wilson has had to fight hard this week, coming from 3-0 down against Andrew Higginson before tight wins against Mark King and Ding Junhui and he will have another big fight on against Lisowski.

Stuart Bingham and Neil Robertson is another tight looking match up between two top players. They met recently in the first round of the Romanian Masters and Bingham came out on top there 4-3 and overall he has a far superior record against the Australian. Bingham has looked in good form this week despite having to come through deciders against Matthew Stevens and Ricky Walden, a match in which he made a 147. Then today he came through comfortably against Graeme Dott. Robertson has also had to fight, coming from 4-1 down in the last 32 against Sam Craigie. Today though he was also a comfortable winner and if he is on top form this could be a match that goes all 11 frames. However, given the head to head record Bingham may have a slight psychological edge coming into the match.

Finally, Barry Hawkins will face Tom Ford. The pair met recently in the last 64 of the Welsh Open, with Hawkins winning 4-0 on the way to making the final in Cardiff. Over a longer format, Hawkins was also a convincing winner when he met Ford in the first round of last year's World Championship as he dismantled Ford 10-3. This week, Ford has overcome Yuan Sijun and Luo Honghao by 6-2 scorelines, as well as defeating Elliot Slessor 6-4 in the last 32. Hawkins meanwhile was 6-3 winner against Sam Baird before thrashing Michael White and then coming back from the brink against Cao Yupeng. On paper, and with the head to head, Hawkins should be a big favourite here but there is no reason why this could not be a long awaited big breakthrough week for Ford.


The quarter-finals are again played over the best-of-11 frames as the tournament goes down to two tables, with places in the big best-of-19 frame semi-finals at stake. There's also another big jump in the money with all the quarter-finalists currently guaranteed £27,000, while the four winners would then be assured of £45,000 for making the semi-finals. Either way, there are four exciting matches to look forward to on Friday.

Stuart Bingham hits China Open's second 147 break

Stuart Bingham hit the front on day three of the China Open by hitting the tournament's second maximum break on the way to a 6-5 victory against Ricky Walden.

This came after Ronnie O'Sullivan made a 147 in a losing cause in the last 64 against Elliot Slessor, and the pair will now share the combined £42,000 for the rolling 147 bonus and high break prize. Bingham's maximum came in frame seven after Walden had just levelled at 3-3 from 3-1 adrift.

The 2015 World Champion would then go on to take a 5-3 lead only for Walden to fight back again and force a decider. In the end though, a tightly contested decider went the way of Bingham and he is now into the last 16 in Beijing.

Joining him is defending champion Mark Selby as he overcame fellow Leicester player Ben Woollaston 6-3. Selby made two breaks of 135 in back to back frames in taking an early 2-1 lead. This lead would extend to 5-1 despite Woollaston having good chances in each of those three frames. The former Welsh Open finalist was able to extend the match with successive frames, but Selby was too strong and ultimately completed a fairly comfortable victory.

Former winner Ding Junhui played out a flawless final four frames as he won an all-Chinese clash with Xiao Guodong 6-2. From 2-2, Xiao would not score another point after the mid-session interval as Ding produced breaks of 83, 90, 133 and 138.

Mark Williams was also in fine form kicking off his 6-1 win over Michael Holt with breaks of 112, 90 and 93, and he has now set up a last 16 tie with Masters champion Mark Allen. Allen overcame Yan Bingtao to book his place and remain in pole position to qualify automatically for the Crucible. Only six of the last 16 could possibly deny him and each of those players would have to go on and win the tournament. Of these six though, only Graeme Dott has ever won a ranking event.

One of the players that could still make it into the top 16 with a tournament victory is Jack Lisowski after he thrashed John Higgins 6-2. Lisowski had high breaks of 54, 68, 72 and 95 in the victory that saw him win four successive frames from 2-2.

Neil Robertson meanwhile fought back from 4-1 down to defeat Sam Craigie in a deciding frame. In all Robertson hit two tons and a break of 93 to pull things back after a very strong start from Craigie who had delivered four tons to defeat Martin Gould in the previous round.

World Snooker Federation champion Luo Honghao continues to impress, defeating Duane Jones 6-5 to book his place in the last 16 and bag a fourth professional scalp of the tournament. He'll now face Tom Ford after Ford saw off Elliot Slessor 6-4.

Last 32 results: 

Mark Selby 6-3 Lu Haotian
Lu Haotian 6-5 Fergal O'Brien
Mark Williams 6-1 Michael Holt
Mark Allen 6-4 Yan Bingtao
Jack Lisowski 6-2 John Higgins
Gary Wilson 6-4 Joe Perry
Kyren Wilson 6-4 Mark King
Ding Junhui 6-2 Xiao Guodong 
Zhou Yuelong 6-2 Jak Jones
Neil Robertson 6-5 Sam Craigie
Stuart Bingham 6-5 Ricky Walden
Graeme Dott 6-3 Chris Wakelin
Barry Hawkins 6-1 Michael White
Cao Yupeng 6-2 David Gilbert
Luo Honghao 6-5 Duane Jones
Tom Ford 6-4 Elliot Slessor

Last 16 draw: (Picks in bold) 

Mark Selby Vs Lu Haotian
Mark Williams Vs Mark Allen
Jack Lisowski Vs Gary Wilson
Ding Junhui Vs Kyren Wilson
Neil Robertson Vs Zhou Yuelong
Stuart Bingham Vs Graeme Dott
Barry Hawkins Vs Cao Yupeng
Tom Ford Vs Luo Honghao  


World and defending China Open champion Mark Selby faces a tough tie with young Lu Haotian. Lu came very close to defeating Selby earlier on this season in the European Masters and is into the last 16 after wins against Liam Highfield and Fergal O'Brien so far in Beijing. Selby is really starting to warm up this week and improving by the match it seems after an impressive win over Ben Woollaston. For me, Selby's tactical prowess will be too much for Lu here.

The tie of the round is the in-form Mark Williams take on Masters champion Mark Allen. Williams has had two very comfortable 6-1 wins so far and this will be by far his biggest challenge of the tournament so far. Allen meanwhile was flawless in a 6-1 first round win of his own and took care of the dangerous Yan Bingtao to move closer to Crucible automatic qualification. A win in this match would guarantee his Crucible seeding and this extra carrot may just help to push him on in a very difficult tie here. Allen also has a much superior record against Williams, and has beaten him in each of their last four meetings in Chinese events.

Ding Junhui faces another big Chinese tie against Kyren Wilson. Ding was an emphatic winner when the pair faced off in the World Open final earlier this season, while Wilson came through 5-1 a year ago in the China Open quarter-finals. Ding was flawless in the second half of what looked a tough match up with Xiao Guodong in the last 32, while Wilson was in fine scoring form as he defeated Mark King. Much like many of the last 16 ties, this is another one that is very tough to call and there may not be too much to separate the two players.

Stuart Bingham looks to be coming into fantastic form at the moment. After reaching the Romanian Masters final recently his maximum 147 in defeating a tough opponent in Ricky Walden is another sign that he is a big contender for this title. Graeme Dott has had a good start to the week with wins over Mark Joyce and Chris Wakelin in which he has conceded half the number of frames that Bingham has so far. Both look to be in good form but Bingham has a very good record against Dott so he should be full of confidence coming into this.

Barry Hawkins and Cao Yupeng are another pair of players who look to be in really good form this week. Cao has had a remarkable season reaching two ranking finals, and already this week he has seen off higher ranked opposition in Luca Brecel and David Gilbert. As always though, Hawkins looks to be warming up for another big Crucible run and has beaten Sam Baird and thrashed Michael White so far this week. This really looks like a coin flip match and could well go all 11 frames, though Hawkins should be very confident after recently reaching the Welsh Open final, and such an emphatic win against White is a sign that he is close to the top of his game.


With so many even looking match ups and in-form players it looks like a brilliant last 16 line-up in Beijing as the tournament (and prize money) really starts to heat up.

Ronnie O'Sullivan crashes out of China Open despite 147 break

Ronnie O'Sullivan has crashed out of the China Open at the last 64 stage, despite making a 147. Elliot Slessor was the man to take down the Rocket, having done so earlier on this season in the Northern Ireland Open.

Slessor cruised into a 4-0 lead against an under par O'Sullivan, but it was in the fifth frame that O'Sullivan made the maximum break, and for it he will collect the £35,000 rolling 147 bonus and the £7,000 high break prize - as long as another one is not made in the remainder of the competition. As for Slessor, his match high break of 64 helped him close out the victory in frame eight.

In the same session as Players and UK Champion O'Sullivan exited, so too did the runner-up from both of those events. Shaun Murphy, who may well still be suffering from the neck injury that has plagued him in recent weeks. Chris Wakelin took full advantage of that making breaks of 85, 54, 54, 56 and 58 on the way to an emphatic 6-0 whitewash.

Defending China Open champion Mark Selby is into the last 32 though after two battling performances so far this week. On Monday, his last 128 match against Wang Yuchen saw him fall 2-0 behind before coming through 6-4. Then in his last 64 match on Tuesday he was again run close by Scott Donaldson, who defeated Selby at the same stage of this season's UK Championship, but Selby fought hard and managed to get over the line by the same score.

Ding Junhui also had to battle hard to come through his last 64 tie with Craig Steadman. Ding found himself 4-3 down in the tie and Steadman had made two centuries in the contest to put himself ahead. The Chinese number one stepped in the last three frames though as Steadman only scored a further 24 points, while Ding turned it around to win 6-4.

The race for the Crucible has become much clearer after the first round in Beijing. Mark Allen dispatched of Noppon Saengkham 6-1, making three centuries and a break of 98 in the process. The victory means that Ryan Day will have to go to qualifying while Allen's almost secure of his place.

Deciding frame losses for Stephen Maguire against Fergal O'Brien and China's number two Liang Wenbo against Duane Jones means they too will also be going to the qualifiers. A 6-5 win for Mark King means he could still qualify automatically by making the final, while anyone else currently out of the 16 would have to take the top prize on Sunday.

There are still a number of big top 16 players in the draw though. John Higgins recorded a comfortable 6-2 win over Martin O'Donnell, while in-form Mark Williams cruised to a 6-1 defeat of Thepchaiya Un-Nooh in the last 64.

Neil Robertson avenged his International Championship loss to Robbie Williams with a 6-3 win, while Kyren Wilson came from 3-0 down to overcome Andrew Higginson with six frames in a row. Barry Hawkins was also a 6-3 winner over Sam Baird, putting Baird in even deeper trouble as he looks to stay on the professional tour.

There was another early exit though for Ali Carter as he went down 6-4 to former China Open runner-up and recent Welsh Open semi-finalist Gary Wilson.

World Snooker Federation champion Luo Honghao has already had an excellent week in Beijing. As a wildcard in the tournament he overcame Basem Eltahhan in the preliminary round 6-1 on Monday morning, then in the evening session he faced Stuart Carrington and won again 6-2 to book a last 64 encounter with Anthony McGill.

It looked like the run would come to an end when the former Indian Open champion McGill took a 4-2 lead having made a 126 in frame three, while Luo had a century in frame five. In frame seven Luo then produced a 143 to close the gap and ultimately he would win four successive frames and make an 84 in frame ten to secure a 6-4 victory and march into the last 32.

Meanwhile, a special mention should go to Sam Craigie who was on fire in defeating Martin Gould 6-4. Craigie made four centuries in the match, and back-to-back tons from 4-4 to secure an important win for his tour survival.

Last 64 results: 

Mark Selby 6-4 Scott Donaldson
Ben Woollaston 6-5 Lee Walker
Lu Haotian 6-4 Liam Highfield
Fergal O'Brien 6-5 Stephen Maguire
Michael Holt 6-4 Mark Davis
Mark Williams 6-1 Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
Yan Bingtao 6-5 Kurt Maflin
Mark Allen 6-1 Noppon Saengkham
John Higgins 6-2 Martin O'Donnell
Jack Lisowski 6-1 Anthony Hamilton
Gary Wilson 6-4 Ali Carter
Joe Perry 6-0 Chris Totten
Kyren Wilson 6-3 Andrew Higginson
Mark King 6-5 Peter Ebdon
Xiao Guodong 6-5 Jimmy Robertson
Ding Junhui 6-4 Craig Steadman
Jak Jones 6-5 Nigel Bond
Zhou Yuelong 6-2 Chen Zhe
Sam Craigie 6-4 Martin Gould
Neil Robertson 6-3 Robbie Williams
Stuart Bingham 6-5 Matthew Stevens
Ricky Walden 6-0 Hamza Akbar
Graeme Dott 6-2 Mark Joyce
Chris Wakelin 6-0 Shaun Murphy
Barry Hawkins 6-3 Sam Baird
Michael White 6-5 Paul Davison
David Gilbert 6-3 Mike Dunn
Cao Yupeng 6-4 Luca Brecel
Luo Honghao 6-4 Anthony McGill
Duane Jones 6-5 Liang Wenbo
Tom Ford 6-2 Yuan Sijun
Elliot Slessor 6-2 Ronnie O'Sullivan


Last 32 draw: (Picks in bold)

Mark Selby Vs Ben Woollaston 
Fergal O'Brien Vs Lu Haotian
Mark Williams Vs Michael Holt
Mark Allen Vs Yan Bingtao
John Higgins Vs Jack Lisowski
Joe Perry Vs Gary Wilson
Kyren Wilson Vs Mark King
Ding Junhui Vs Xiao Guodong
Zhou Yuelong Vs Jak Jones
Neil Robertson Vs Sam Craigie
Stuart Bingham Vs Ricky Walden
Graeme Dott Vs Chris Wakelin
Barry Hawkins Vs Michael White
David Gilbert Vs Cao Yupeng
Duane Jones Vs Luo Honghao
Tom Ford Vs Elliot Slessor


Despite some surprises in the first couple of days in Beijing there are still plenty of intriguing ties in the last 32.

Ricky Walden has beaten Stuart Bingham in both their major Chinese meetings, 5-1 in the 2016 China Open quarter-finals and 10-4 in the 2014 Wuxi Classic final. Both have had success in China in the past but had differing paths to reach the last 32. Walden came through without dropping a frame against Hamza Akbar, while Stuart Bingham came from behind to come through 6-5 against Matthew Stevens. Given the quality of both players it would be no surprise to see this one going the distance.

Mark Allen will face Yan Bingtao for the third time this season. Allen has won both of those previous meetings and will be under much less pressure now that his Crucible spot is almost secure. If he keeps up the scoring form displayed in round one he will be very hot to handle. Yan meanwhile had to come from behind and won the last three frames of a 6-5 win over Kurt Maflin.

Four ton Sam Craigie now faces another tough tie against Neil Robertson. The Australian looked in good form against Robbie Williams but will face a real challenge here if Craigie can keep up his heavy scoring displayed in round one. After a display like that Craigie should be full of confidence and could well score another upset here.

Barry Hawkins faces Michael White, and despite White being a very tough opponent, Hawkins has only lost to the Welshman once in nine previous meetings, most recently in the Shanghai Masters in November. White had to grind out victory against Paul Davison eventually coming through 6-5 while Hawkins will have been happy to come through 6-3 against Sam Baird in the last 64.

Joe Perry will now face Gary Wilson after Wilson's victory over Ali Carter. Perry was in fine round one form himself though with some heavy scoring in a 6-0 win over Chris Totten. Perry has looked in better form this season than he ended last season with and a good run here could tee him up nicely for the World Championship qualifiers, unless he were to win the tournament this week of course.

One of the ties of the round sees Ding Junhui take on Xiao Guodong in a tasty all-Chinese clash. The pair of course contested the 2013 Shanghai Masters final, which Ding won as he did when the pair met in this season's World Open last 32 - a tournament Ding would go on to win. Xiao was impressive in round one taking on an in-form Jimmy Robertson. Xiao made two centuries, one of which forced the decider in which he made a 99 break to win the match. Ding meanwhile had to battle against Craig Steadman and given the form Xiao has been in this season and some of the players he has beaten, Ding can expect a similarly tough tie here.

After the two battles he has already faced to make it into the last 32, defending champion Mark Selby now faces an all-Leicester battle with Ben Woollaston. Woollaston overcame Lee Walker in a mammoth last 64 tie so he will battle hardened for this one. Selby looks out of sorts and low on confidence at the moment so if Woollaston can play as he has done against some of the top players this season, scoring well win or lose, then he certainly has a chance of causing the upset.

The pick of the bunch though has to be John Higgins against Jack Lisowski. The pair have played once already this season, with Higgins coming through comfortably in the last 128 of the Scottish Open. Lisowski may have a better chance here though in more 'neutral' territory. The left-hander was a comfortable 6-1 winner on Monday morning against Anthony Hamilton with a top break of 114. Higgins was also an easy winner in the last 64 and you feel if one thing will separate these two players it will be the Scot's tactical prowess.


Either way there should be some very entertaining second round clashes here over the best-of-11 frames with the winners moving from a guaranteed £11,000 to the £18,000 guaranteed to last 16 losers, so there is big money on offer throughout the week.

China Open Preview

On Easter Monday, snooker will begin treading uncharted territory with the biggest Chinese event in the sports history. The winner next Sunday will take home £225,000, the second biggest prize of the 2017/2018 season, £75,000 more than any other Chinese event this season, £55,000 more than the UK Championship first prize and £25,000 more than Mark Allen picked up in January for becoming the Masters champion.

All matches up to and including the quarter-finals are played over the best-of-11 frames, an extension on the previous format of this event. Meanwhile, the semi-finals will be played over the best-of-19 frames, and the final over the best-of-21 frames. Not only is this the perfect warm up for the World Championships but also an incredibly important event in its own right.

After this event, the top 16 in the world rankings will be guaranteed their place at the Crucible for the World Championships, while the remainder of the tour will be heading to the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield to battle for the remaining 16 spots.

For Ryan Day, his failure to qualify for Beijing could prove costly. He is currently in position at 16th in the provisional Crucible rankings, but if Mark Allen is able to defeat Noppon Saengkham in the last 64 it will send Day to the EIS.

Theoretically, players as low as 60 in the provisional Crucible rankings could make it into the top 16 by winning the title, if other results go their way in the process. However, only Mark King and Liang Wenbo can get into the top 16 by reaching the final, while a place in the semi-finals for Stephen Maguire would most probably be enough to get him to the Crucible automatically.

Quarter 1

Last 64 draw: (Picks in bold)

Mark Selby or Wang Yuchen Vs Scott Donaldson

Ben Woollaston Vs Lee Walker

Liam Highfield Vs Lu Haotian 

Stephen Maguire Vs Fergal O'Brien

Michael Holt Vs Mark Davis

Mark Williams Vs Thepchiaya Un-Nooh

Yan Bingtao Vs Kurt Maflin

Mark Allen Vs Noppon Saengkham

Defending China Open champion Mark Selby has one more tournament to find some form ahead of his return to the Crucible. His season has not had many highlights since winning the International Championship in Daqing at the beginning of November. If he overcomes Wang Yuchen in his heldover last 128 tie then Selby would face Scott Donaldson in the last 64, who was responsible for his last 64 exit at the UK Championship. Last week at the Players Championship he fell in round one after a round one exit in the Romanian Masters and a last 64 loss at the Welsh Open. Staggeringly, the world number one is actually as low as eighth on the money list for this season so he will be hoping to have a good run this week, and build his confidence back up ahead of his World Championship title defence.

The current numbers 17 and 18 on the provisional Crucible seeding list are both in this section of the draw. Mark Allen has a must win game against Noppon Saengkham as he looks to leapfrog Ryan Day in the seedings list. This brings with it huge pressure on Allen, while Saengkham will have plenty of confidence after a career best run to the semi-finals of the Welsh Open a month ago that saw him defeat Judd Trump and Kyren Wilson along the way. Allen has struggled since winning the Masters, and spoke on Twitter of his struggle for form after a first round exit in the Players Championship. This followed a first round loss in Romania and last 32 exits at the Welsh Open and World Grand Prix.

Stephen Maguire meanwhile needs to find a way to win this quarter or face a second successive year of World Championship qualifying. The 2008 China Open champion does have plenty of form in this event, making the semi-finals in 2016 to secure his automatic Crucible seeding. The Scotsman was also a semi-finalist in 2013 and runner-up in 2012 to Peter Ebdon. Last year he fell at the quarter-final stage to eventual winner Mark Selby, and the pair could face off this week in the last 16. 

However, my quarter choice this week is last year's China Open runner-up Mark Williams. His run last year got him into contention for an automatic Crucible qualification spot, but defeat to Selby in the final denied him. So, 12 months on from that and the further disappointment of failing to come through the World Championship qualifiers, it is remarkable to see him back in the world's top eight and someone who looks a big factor in every tournament he plays. As well as winning the Northern Ireland Open and the German Masters, Williams has been in a number of semi and quarter-finals including the recent Players Championship. As well as that, he has been a quarter-finalist in three of the four Chinese events so far this season so it would not be a surprise to see him in the latter stages contending for a title he has won in 2002, 2006 and 2010. 

Best of the rest: Stephen Maguire

Quarter choice: Mark Williams 

Quarter 2

Last 64 draw: (Picks in bold) 

John Higgins Vs Martin O'Donnell

Anthony Hamilton Vs Jack Lisowski

Ali Carter Vs Gary Wilson

Joe Perry Vs Chris Totten

Mark King Vs Peter Ebdon or Zhang Yong or Chang Bingyu

Kyren Wilson Vs Andrew Higginson or Chen Feilong or Fan Zhengyi 

Xiao Guodong Vs Jimmy Robertson 

Ding Junhui or Michael Georgiou Vs Craig Steadman 

Fresh from his Championship League victory this week, John Higgins will be looking to press and have a run at taking home a much bigger title this week in Beijing. The Scottish number 1 looks to be hitting top form again at the right time, after also taking the trophy at the Welsh Open a month ago. He will have been disappointed to lose 6-0 in round one of the Players Championship, but as he showed in the Championship League that was a very temporary blip. Not only does Higgins have a fantastic chance this week, in my view he is very much one of the top contenders for the Crucible as well.

In many ways it is nice that, by complete chance, Peter Ebdon has had his last 128 match heldover. The China Open is the scene of his last two ranking titles in 2009 and 2012, so it will always be a special tournament for him. In 2014 he made the last 16 after defeating Judd Trump in Beijing and he is more than capable of pulling off an upset or two this week. Equally, Jack Lisowski could pull off a couple of upsets in Beijing this week. This tournament was where Lisowski made his first ever quarter-final back in 2013 and after finally bettering this by make the semi-finals in Shanghai earlier this season, he must relishing another trip to China.

Kyren Wilson is certainly one to watch this week. He has had some good times in China this season, making the final of the World Open in September as well as making a 147 in the International Championships. He was also a semi-finalist at this tournament 12 months ago, and of course his only ranking title to date came at the Shanghai Masters in 2015. After making three finals in all this season, there is absolutely no reason why he cannot get on another run and perhaps add to that tally at the end of the week. 

Meanwhile, Xiao Guodong and Jimmy Robertson for me is one of the picks of the last 64 in Beijing. Xiao has been in brilliant form this season, making quarter-finals at the Scottish Open, German Masters and the World Grand Prix. The 29-year-old has flown back into the top 32 while Jimmy Robertson is on the fringes after a good season himself. This included a German Masters quarter-final of his own, and some very consistent play pre-Christmas that saw him make the last 32 on a number of occasions. After a poor recent run of first round exits in Gibraltar and the Welsh Open, Robertson hit back to win five of his six round-robin games in group seven of the Championship League. This included a 3-0 win over Ricky Walden and 3-2 wins over Luca Brecel and John Higgins, though ultimately Higgins would gain revenge by defeating him in the group semi-final.

My second quarter pick though is a man looking for a hat-trick of China Open titles in Ding Junhui. The Chinese number 1 turns 31 the day before this tournament gets underway and he has plenty of form in this event. It was the scene of his 2005 breakthrough while his second Beijing title came in 2014. Along with that he was runner-up to Mark Williams in 2010 and has reached semi-finals at this event in 2006, 2011, 2012 and 2015. Recently, he made the final of the World Grand Prix losing out to O'Sullivan, who would overcome him again in the Players Championship quarter-finals. Ding has already won in China this season collecting the World Open title in September before suffering with an eye problem prior to Christmas. Of his 13 ranking titles, six have come in China and seven in Asia overall, so he is always one of the leading contenders in this part of the world and he surely will be again this week. There are certainly a few obstacles in a difficult quarter of the draw, but if Ding is on top form he should have enough to get past those and be around at the weekend in Beijing. 

Best of the rest: Jack Lisowski

Quarter choice: Ding Junhui

Quarter 3

Last 64 draw: (Picks in bold)

Jak Jones Vs Nigel Bond

Zhou Yuelong Vs Chen Zhe

Neil Robertson Vs Robbie Williams

Martin Gould Vs Sam Craigie

Ricky Walden Vs Hamza Akbar

Stuart Bingham Vs Matthew Stevens

Graeme Dott Vs Mark Joyce

Shaun Murphy Vs Chris Wakelin 

Zhou Yuelong has not had his best season in the ranking events, but has had a little success in the Championship League. After winning group 1 of the competition in early January he came back for the Winner's group this week and reached the final before narrowly missing out on the title 3-2 to John Higgins. That should give him some confidence though coming into this week and with the draw in his section slightly more open, he in my view is the clear front runner for a place in the last 16 at the very least.

2016 runner-up Ricky Walden will be looking for another big week in China as he looks to build some form up leading into the World Championship qualifiers. He could of course still qualify automatically by winning a fourth ranking title, and with the other three all coming in China, this event is one of the few Chinese tournaments he has not yet been able to capture. Graeme Dott is in a similar boat of someone looking for a good week to take into the World qualifiers. Dott captured this title 11 years ago and has reached quarter-finals since then in 2009 and 2014 so he is certainly dangerous and one to watch out for this week.

Stuart Bingham meanwhile is not completely assured of his place in the World Championship as a seed. He is currently 15th on the provisional Crucible list but could fall to 16th if he loses in round one and Mark Allen gets through to the last 32, thus opening the door if someone just outside of the 16 were to have a big week. In terms of Bingham's own form he will have been pleased to make the final in Romania recently, even if he did end up losing from 4-0 in front. He also made the quarters in Gibraltar the week before though his last 64 opponent in Beijing is the same man that sent him home at the last 32 stage of the recent Welsh Open.

Finally, it is always worth mentioning Neil Robertson but particularly this week. Looking at the draw, he has to be the hot favourite to come through and make it to at least the quarter-finals with Martin Gould being the highest ranked player he would have to defeat in order to do so. His form has been very hit and miss with good wins being followed by surprising losses. After his impeccable display against Luca Brecel at the Players Championship, his display in the following round against Trump was nowhere near the same standard as he fell to a crushing defeat against Judd Trump. He will have good memories of this event, having captured the title in 2013 and nearly defending it in 2014 despite suffering from a virus throughout the event. In recent years he has not been able to keep this going losing at the last 64 stage in 2015 and 2016 before not even entering last year. 

That leaves my selection in this quarter as five time finalist in the 2017/2018 season Shaun Murphy. Murphy has been unfortunate in many ways that he has not won more this season. The Champion of Champions victor has met O'Sullivan in three of his five finals this season, winning one of those. A reoccurring neck and back injury did not hamper his performance as much as many thought it would when he made the Players Championship final, despite being in significant pain. As well as appearing in a quintet of finals, Murphy has been consistent with a semi-final in Berlin and a quarter-final at the Grand Prix earlier in 2018. Despite never winning this title, Murphy has made at least the quarter-finals in seven of his 12 Beijing appearances, with semi-finals in 2011 and 2013 as well as narrowly missing out to Stephen Maguire in the 2008 final. Making the final of the China Championship earlier this season shows that he certainly has form in China and after the Players Championship he should also be full of confidence. All of that makes Murphy a big contender for this title. 

Best of the rest: Zhou Yuelong

Quarter choice: Shaun Murphy

Quarter 4

Last 64 draw: (Picks in bold) 

Barry Hawkins Vs Sam Baird

Michael White Vs Paul Davison

Luca Brecel Vs Cao Yupeng

David Gilbert Vs Mike Dunn

Liang Wenbo or Rhys Clark Vs Duane Jones

Anthony McGill Vs Stuart Carrington or Basem Eltahhan or Luo Honghao

Tom Ford Vs Yuan Sijun

Ronnie O'Sullivan or Ross Muir Vs Elliot Slessor 

Barry Hawkins will be looking to build from his recent good performance. The Welsh Open finalist had a poor first half to the season, but was excellent in Cardiff and will now be looking to build his form ahead of another big run at the Crucible. Sam Baird is Hawkins opponent in round one and needs a victory to boost his tour survival hopes after a very poor season has left him provisionally outside of the top 64 and outside of the top 8 on the one-season list not already qualified for next season. Hawkins record in the China Open is not the best however, so this may provide half an opportunity if Baird can find some form.

Luca Brecel is really struggling for form in this second half of the season. First round exits in the Players Championship, Gibraltar Open and the World Grand Prix were also accompanied by a last 64 loss in the Welsh Open. There was a highlight in the Championship League last week as he made a 147 in a 3-0 win over John Higgins, though this was the only game he managed to win as he finished bottom of the group. His best form this season by a mile has come over in China which gives him hopes for improvement. As well as winning the China Championship in August, Brecel was a semi-finalist at the World Open and made the quarter-finals of the Shanghai Masters. Perhaps another Chinese trip will help him find his game again ahead of the Crucible.

In round one though he faces a very difficult tie against Cao Yupeng. Cao is having the season of his life having made the Scottish Open final, narrowly missing out on victory there, and then making the Gibraltar Open final a few weeks ago. When the pair met earlier on this season Cao only lost out 5-4 in the World Open last 16, and his performances over the season have been very impressive as he qualified for the World Grand Prix and only just missed out on the Players Championship.

Liang Wenbo needs to make the final this week in order to make the Crucible automatically or face going to the qualifiers. As the Chinese number 2 his last 128 match has been heldover to the venue. There are two clear obstacles in the draw for Liang with a potential last 32 against McGill and a potential last 16 against O'Sullivan so it is hard to give him much of a chance of making the Crucible as a seed. His form has simply not been up to scratch as he failed to qualify for the World Grand Prix and the Players Championship. In ranking events, Liang has failed to make a quarter-final all season and it is difficult to see that changing this week.

Anthony McGill should come to Beijing with a lot more confidence after whitewashing John Higgins 6-0 in the first round of the recent Players Championship, ending his Higgins hoodoo this season. He only narrowly missed out on the semi-finals in Llandudno losing out 6-5 to Shaun Murphy. This also comes after a last 16 appearance in Gibraltar, a run that you feel ended prematurely, and a quarter-final at the World Grand Prix. This is much like the consistency he displayed at the beginning of the season where he made the Indian Open final, English Open semi's and three quarter-finals in addition. He may be the strongest opposition in this section to the world number two. 

Once again though my quarter choice is the player of the season Ronnie O'Sullivan. His form this season is making it very difficult to pick anyone else in fact. His win at the Players Championship was a fifth ranking title of the season, joining his wins at the World Grand Prix, UK Championships, Shanghai Masters and the English Open. That Shanghai victory is the reason I think he could go all the way here in Beijing. Prior to that there were some question marks about him in Chinese events but he answered that by romping to victory. In the China Championships a sublime comeback from eventual winner Brecel halted him at the quarter-final stages. It really is difficult to pick out one man who could stop him this week, because when he has been beaten it has usually taken an excellent performance from his opponent, so it is all about whether anyone can step up to the plate and make that happen. If not, then ranking title number six of this unbelievable season could be on its way. 

Best of the rest: Cao Yupeng

Quarter choice: Ronnie O'Sullivan 

Tournament Winner Selection: Ding Junhui


The event will be covered in full this week on Eurosport while in the UK the 12.30pm sessions will also be simulcast live on Quest. With Crucible spots and huge money on the line and all of the world's best players in the running, the penultimate event of the snooker season should provide plenty of drama and excitement. 

Fantasy Snooker: Points Update and China Open info

The fantasy snooker season is nearing a conclusion, with just two events to go of the contest. The Players Championship victory last week for Ronnie O'Sullivan earned a lot of points for the players that had faith in him, though markedly fewer believed that the injured Shaun Murphy would go on and make the final.

The gap at the top of the table has been closed slightly as well and with two events to go there is still plenty that can change in the overall standings. The upcoming China Open is the final chance for players to use Captain's picks, so if you haven't used your quota make sure you specify to use them with your picks this week for double points.

As there are only two events left all players that have only previously been selected once by a participant have been taken out of the table as they cannot be selected more than three times before the end of the season. Players highlighted in red are those that you have already played three times and cannot pick again in these last two events.

Please note, players like Mark Selby, Ding Junhui and Ronnie O'Sullivan who have had their last 128 matches held over to the venue, cannot earn you points for the last 128 match - so don't pick them just because they have an extra game.

Here is how the full table stands ahead of Beijing:

ALL PLAYERS REMOVED WHO HAVE ONLY BEEN PICKED ONCE AND CANNOT POSSIBLY BE PICKED MORE THAN THREE TIMES

Couge: SEASON: Yan Bingtao and Sam Craigie   Points: 1182  

PPS: Williams x3, Ding x3, Murphy x3, Higgins x3, Bingham x3, Trump x3, Selby x2, O’Sullivan x2, K. Wilson x2 (2 Captain picks used)

Daniela Reich: SEASON: Yan Bingtao and Sam Craigie   Points: 1110  

PPS: Ding x2, Murphy x3, Allen x2, Williams x3, Trump x3, Bingham x2, O’Sullivan x2, Selby x2, Wenbo x2, Maguire x2, Robertson x2

Kellie Barker: SEASON: Jack Lisowski and Alex Ursenbacher   Points: 1084  

PPS: Allen x3, Murphy x2, Higgins x2, Hawkins x2, Trump x2, Brecel x2, Selby x2, Williams x2, Robertson x3, O’Sullivan x2, Maguire x2, Bingham x2 (2 Captains picks used)

Protoursnooker: SEASON: Thepchaiya Un-Nooh and Cao Yupeng    Points: 1077  

PPS: Ding x2, Murphy x3, Selby x2, Robertson x3, Higgins x2, Hawkins x2, O’Sullivan x3, Trump x3, Bingham x2, (2 Captain Picks used) 

FAM147: SEASON: Zhao Xintong and Xiao Guodong   Points: 1011    

PPS: Bingham x2, Allen x2, Lisowski x2, Selby x2, Trump x3, Robertson x3, O’Sullivan x2, Maguire x2, McGill x2

Alex Abrahams: SEASON: Yan Bingtao and John Astley    Points: 962   

PPS: Carter x2, Murphy x3, Higgins x3, K. Wilson x2, Trump x3, Williams x2, Bingham x2, O’Sullivan x3, Selby x2, Robertson x3 (2 Captains picks used)

Phil Mudd: SEASON: Jimmy Robertson and Sam Craigie   Points: 949 

PPS: Ding x2, Allen x3, Robertson x2, Williams x3, Higgins x2, O’Sullivan x3, Selby x2, Gould x2, Bingtao x3 (2 Captains picks used)

TungstenDarts: SEASON: Yan Bingtao and Sam Craigie   Points: 935  

PPS: Fu x3, Hawkins x2, McGill x3, Allen x3, Selby x2, Williams x2, Gould x2, Trump x2, Ding x2, Robertson x2, O’Sullivan x2, Maguire x2 (2 Captain picks used)

Isitan Bakar: SEASON: Yan Bingtao and Scott Donaldson   Points: 934  

PPS: Robertson x3, Murphy x2, Bingham x3, Ding x2, Higgins x2, Trump x3, O’Sullivan x3, Hawkins x2, (3 Captains pick used)

Colin Delaney: SEASON: Ken Doherty and Yan Bingtao   Points: 925   

PPS: Higgins x3, Maguire x2, Allen x2, Hawkins x2, Ding x2, Trump x3, Selby x2, Murphy x2, Gould x2, Lisowski x2, Perry x2, Robertson x3 (3 Captain Picks used)

Munraj: SEASON: Jack Lisowski and Michael Georgiou   Points: 915    

PPS: Ding x3, Trump x2, Allen x2, Hawkins x2, Selby x2, Robertson x3, McGill x2, O’Sullivan x2, (2 Captains picks used)

Andy Brooker: SEASON: Yan Bingtao and Sam Craigie   Points: 910   

PPS: Bingham x2, Higgins x3, Williams x2, Trump x2, O’Sullivan x3, Allen x2, Robertson x2, Selby x2, Murphy x2 (1 Captain pick used)

TY: SEASON: Yan Bingtao and Zhang Anda   Points: 907  

PPS: Ding x2, Robertson x3, Higgins x3, Allen x3, Ding x2, Bingham x3, Selby x3, Trump x2, Murphy x3 (1 Captain Pick used)

John McBride: SEASON: Hossein Vafei and Sam Craigie   Points: 886  

PPS:  Liang x2, Murphy x2, Trump x2, Allen x3, Selby x3, Williams x3, Robertson x3, Higgins x2

Cluster of Reds: SEASON: Yan Bingtao and John Astley   Points: 872   

PPS: Allen x3, Trump x2, Brecel x2, Robertson x2, Gould x3, Murphy x3, O’Sullivan x3, Higgins x2 (2 Captains pick used)

Rob Francis: SEASON: Mark Davis and Cao Yupeng   Points: 872  

PPS: Ding x3, Robertson x3, Murphy x3, Higgins x3, Wilson x2, Trump x3, Selby x2, O’Sullivan x3, Brecel x2 (3 Captains pick used)

Ben Summers: SEASON: Noppon Saengkham and Sam Craigie    Points: 831    

PPS: McGill x2, Ding x2, Selby x2, Trump x3, Allen x3, O’Sullivan x2, Williams x3, Maguire x2 (1 captain pick used)

Igor Snooker: SEASON: Matthew Stevens and Ken Doherty   Points: 797  

PPS: O’Sullivan x2, Murphy x3, Selby x3, Robertson x3, McGill x2, Williams x2, Allen x2 (2 captains pick used)

LTD: SEASON: Robert Milkins and Ken Doherty    Points: 787   

PPS: Carter x2, Higgins x3, Hawkins x2, Maguire x2, Perry x3, Wilson x2, Selby x3, O’Sullivan x2, Robertson x2, Walden x2, Bingham x2 (3 Captains picks used)

Anthony: SEASON: Xiao Guodong and Michael Georgiou   Points: 784   

PPS: Higgins x3, Day x2, Maguire x2, Trump x2, Williams x3, O’Sullivan x3, McGill x2, Selby x2, Allen x2

GaryOnCue: SEASON: Thepchaiya Un-Nooh and Sam Craigie   Points: 752   

PPS: Hawkins x2, Robertson x3, Maguire x3, Murphy x3, Ding x2, Selby x2, Higgins x3, Allen x2, O’Sullivan x3, Gould x2 (2 Captain pick used)

D. Muckian: SEASON: Tian Pengfei and Zhang Anda    Points: 703   

PPS: Ding x2, Maguire x2, Allen x3, Williams x2, Lisowski x2, O’Sullivan x2, Wilson x2, Selby x2 (2 Captain pick used)

Kjetil: SEASON: Thepchaiya Un-Nooh and John Astley   Points: 700  

PPS: Carter x2, Allen x2, Gould x3, O’Sullivan x2, Higgins x2 (1 Captain Pick used)

Beat the Boss (Me): SEASON: Hossein Vafei and Robin Hull   Points: 656  

PPS: Maguire x2, Allen x2, Robertson x2, Brecel x2, Hawkins x2, Gould x2, O’Sullivan x2, Higgins x2 (2 Captain picks used)

Mark Taylor: SEASON: Thepchaiya Un-Nooh and Sam Craigie    Points: 656   

PPS: Allen x2, Robertson x2, Perry x2, Higgins x2, Selby x3, O’Sullivan x2 (2 Captain Picks used)

Matthew Lowson: SEASON: Thepchaiya Un-Nooh and Alex Ursenbacher   Points: 635 

PPS: Ding x3, Hawkins x2, Wilson x2, Selby x2, Higgins x3, Murphy x2, Williams x2, O’Sullivan x3, Allen x3 (2 Captains picks used)

My "Beat the Boss" selections for the China Open are Shaun Murphy as a captain's pick and Ding Junhui. 

The full deadline for China Open picks is before the first matches on Monday 2 April at 2.30am UK Time.

All the best to all players for their picks this week.

Fantasy Snooker: Points update and Players Championship info

An interesting weekend of action last time out in Gibraltar has not changed too much in the fantasy snooker standings. Only one player in the entire league picked eventual winner Ryan Day. Only one other had hand picked runner-up Cao Yupeng for the event, though a couple of others have benefited from having him as a season pick. Nobody in the league hand picked either of the surprise semi-finalists Lee Walker and Scott Donaldson, though one player again had Donaldson as a season pick... and that ironically was the same player that picked Day for the tournament.

Now, there are only three sets of selections left to make as we head into the Players Championship, with just the China Open and World Championships to follow. This means players you have selected once who are not in Llandudno or Beijing have been removed from the players previously selected list, as you can no longer pick them more than three times. Don't forget, captain picks cannot be used in the World Championship as it is already a double points event, so make sure to get them in play in the next two events or lose out.

Here are the current standings:

Couge: SEASON: Yan Bingtao and Sam Craigie   Points: 1160  

PPS: Williams x3, Ding x3, Murphy x3, Higgins x3, Bingham x3, Trump x3, Selby x2, O’Sullivan x2, Robertson, Maguire, Allen, K. Wilson (1 Captain pick used)

Protoursnooker: SEASON: Thepchaiya Un-Nooh and Cao Yupeng    Points: 1066  

PPS: Ding x2, Allen, Maguire, Murphy x3, Selby x2, Robertson x2, Higgins, Hawkins x2, O’Sullivan x3, Williams, Trump x3, Wilson, Bingtao, Brecel, Bingham x2, (1 Captain Pick used)

Daniela Reich: SEASON: Yan Bingtao and Sam Craigie   Points: 1064   

PPS: Ding x2, Murphy x3, Allen x2, Williams x2, K. Wilson, Trump x2, Bingham x2, McGill, O’Sullivan x2, Selby x2, Wenbo x2, Maguire x2, Robertson x2, Brecel

Kellie Barker: SEASON: Jack Lisowski and Alex Ursenbacher   Points: 1040   

PPS: Allen x3, Murphy x2, Higgins x2, Hawkins x2, Ding, Trump x2, Brecel x2, Bingtao, Selby x2, Williams, Robertson x2, O’Sullivan x2, Maguire x2, Bingham x2 (2 Captains picks used)

FAM147: SEASON: Zhao Xintong and Xiao Guodong   Points: 987  

PPS: Bingham x2, Allen x2, Lisowski x2, Selby, Murphy, Trump x2, Robertson x3, O’Sullivan x2, Maguire x2, McGill x2, Bingtao

Alex Abrahams: SEASON: Yan Bingtao and John Astley    Points: 951   

PPS: Carter x2, Murphy x3, Higgins x2, K. Wilson x2, Trump x3, Williams x2, Bingham x2, Ding, O’Sullivan x3, Selby x2, Robertson x2, Maguire, McGill (2 Captains pick used)

Phil Mudd: SEASON: Jimmy Robertson and Sam Craigie   Points: 925  

PPS: Ding x2, Allen x3, Robertson x2, Williams x3, Brecel, Higgins x2, O’Sullivan x3, Selby x2, Gould x2, Bingtao x2, Murphy, K. Wilson (2 Captains picks used)

Isitan Bakar: SEASON: Yan Bingtao and Scott Donaldson   Points: 923  

PPS: Robertson x2, Murphy x2, Bingham x3, Ding x2, Higgins, Wilson, Allen, Trump x3, O’Sullivan x3, Hawkins x2, Williams (2 Captains pick used)

Colin Delaney: SEASON: Ken Doherty and Yan Bingtao   Points: 914   

PPS: Higgins x2, Maguire x2, McGill, Allen x2, Hawkins x2, Ding x2, Trump x3, Brecel, Selby x2, Murphy x2, Gould x2, O’Sullivan, Lisowski x2, Perry x2, Robertson x2, Maguire (2 Captain Picks used)

Munraj: SEASON: Jack Lisowski and Michael Georgiou   Points: 904   

PPS: Ding x3, Trump x2, Allen x2, Hawkins x2, Selby x2, Robertson x2, McGill x2, O’Sullivan x2, Wilson, Murphy, Maguire, Williams, Brecel (1 Captain pick used)

TungstenDarts: SEASON: Yan Bingtao and Sam Craigie   Points: 902  

PPS: Fu x3, Hawkins x2, McGill x3, Allen x3, Selby x2, Williams, Gould x2, Trump x2, Ding x2, Robertson, O’Sullivan x2, Maguire x2, Murphy, Brecel, K. Wilson (2 Captain picks used)

TY: SEASON: Yan Bingtao and Zhang Anda   Points: 898  

PPS: Ding x2, Robertson x3, Higgins x3, Allen x3, Ding, Bingham x3, Selby x3, Trump x2, Murphy x3, Brecel, O’Sullivan, Williams (1 Captain Pick used)

Andy Brooker: SEASON: Yan Bingtao and Sam Craigie   Points: 864  

PPS: Maguire, Bingham x2, Higgins x3, Williams x2, Trump x2, O’Sullivan x2, Ding, Allen x2, Robertson x2, Selby x2, Murphy x2, McGill (1 Captain pick used)

Cluster of Reds: SEASON: Yan Bingtao and John Astley   Points: 861

PPS: Ding, Allen x3, Trump x2, Brecel x2, Robertson, Williams, Gould x3, Murphy x3, O’Sullivan x3, Selby, Higgins, Wilson, McGill (2 Captains pick used)

Rob Francis: SEASON: Mark Davis and Cao Yupeng   Points: 850  

PPS: Ding x3, Robertson x2, Murphy x3, Allen, Higgins x3, Wilson x2, Trump x3, Williams, Selby x2, O’Sullivan x3, Maguire, Brecel x2 (3 Captains pick used)

John McBride: SEASON: Hossein Vafei and Sam Craigie   Points: 840 

PPS:  Liang x2, Murphy x2, Trump x2, Allen x3, Selby x3, Williams x3, Robertson x3, Higgins, Wilson, Bingtao

Ben Summers: SEASON: Noppon Saengkham and Sam Craigie    Points: 823   

PPS: McGill x2, Dott, Ding x2, Selby x2, Trump x3, Allen x3, O’Sullivan x2, Williams x3, Higgins, Maguire, Robertson

Igor Snooker: SEASON: Matthew Stevens and Ken Doherty   Points: 773  

PPS: Ding, O’Sullivan x2, Maguire, Murphy x3, Selby x3, Robertson x3, McGill x2, Wilson, Williams x2, Allen x2, Bingtao, O’Sullivan, Brecel (2 captains pick used)

GaryOnCue: SEASON: Thepchaiya Un-Nooh and Sam Craigie   Points: 741   

PPS: Hawkins x2, Robertson x2, Maguire x3, Murphy x3, Ding x2, Selby x2, Higgins x2, Wilson, Allen x2, O’Sullivan x3, Williams, Gould x2 (1 Captain pick used)

Anthony: SEASON: Xiao Guodong and Michael Georgiou   Points: 716 

PPS: Higgins x3, Day x2, Maguire x2, Murphy, Ding, Trump x2, Williams x2, O’Sullivan x2, McGill x2, Selby x2, Allen x2, Wilson, Bingtao

LTD: SEASON: Robert Milkins and Ken Doherty    Points: 691  

PPS: Carter x2, Higgins x3, Hawkins x2, Maguire, Perry x3, Wilson x2, Selby x3, O’Sullivan, Robertson x2, Walden x2, Bingham x2, Williams (2 Captains picks used)

Kjetil: SEASON: Thepchaiya Un-Nooh and John Astley   Points: 654

PPS: Carter x2, Dott, Allen x2, Gould x3, O’Sullivan, Ding, Higgins x2, Maguire, Robertson, Williams, K. Wilson (1 Captain Pick used)

D. Muckian: SEASON: Tian Pengfei and Zhang Anda    Points: 645 

PPS: Ding x2, Maguire x2, Allen X3, Williams x2, Lisowski x2, O’Sullivan x2, Wilson x2, Selby x2, Higgins, McGill (1 Captain pick used)

Mark Taylor: SEASON: Thepchaiya Un-Nooh and Sam Craigie    Points: 634   

PPS: Allen x2, Robertson, Maguire, Perry x2, Higgins x2, Wilson, Selby x3, O’Sullivan x2, Murphy, Brecel, Bingtao, Williams (2 Captain Picks used)

Matthew Lowson: SEASON: Thepchaiya Un-Nooh and Alex Ursenbacher   Points: 624  

PPS: Ding x3, Maguire, Hawkins x2, Brecel, Wilson x2, Selby x2, Higgins x2, Murphy x2, Trump, Williams x2, Bingtao, O’Sullivan x3, Allen x3, McGill (2 Captains picks used)

Beat the Boss (Me): SEASON: Hossein Vafei and Robin Hull   Points: 564   

PPS: Maguire x2, Allen x2, Williams, Robertson x2, Brecel x2, Murphy, Hawkins x2, Ding, Gould x2, Selby, Bingtao, O’Sullivan, Higgins (1 Captain pick used)

My 'Beat the boss' selections for the Players Championship are John Higgins and Ronnie O'Sullivan with a captains pick on O'Sullivan. The deadline for all picks is before the first matches begin on Monday 19th March at 7pm.

All the very best to all players for their picks this week.

Players Championship Preview

This week, the 16 best players of the season so far head to Llandudno for the Players Championship with £125,000 up for grabs for the winner.

The players that have qualified via the one season money list have certainly earned their places. Every single player in the field has reached at least one ranking event final this season, nine of them have been ranking event winners this season, while Shaun Murphy and Mark Allen take the tally of tournament winners in the field to 11 if you include the two biggest invitational events.

Having won the UK Championship, World Grand Prix, English Open and the Shanghai Masters this season Ronnie O'Sullivan is the top seed, while German Masters and Northern Ireland Open winner Mark Williams is the second seed.

One thing is for sure, having qualified for this tournament, every single player in the field can be considered a contender for this big title, while it is an important event for guys like Stephen Maguire, Ryan Day and Allen in the 'Race to the Crucible'.

Quarter 1

First round draw: (Picks in bold) 

Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs Graeme Dott

Ding Junhui Vs Mark Allen

Top seed Ronnie O'Sullivan has been the dominant player of the season by a long way, and there are not many players that can say they have beaten him this year or even given him a good game. The only players to beat O'Sullivan this season are John Higgins (twice - Scottish Open and Welsh Open), Mark Allen (Masters), Elliot Slessor (Northern Ireland Open), Shaun Murphy (Champion of Champions), Yan Bingtao (International Championship) and Luca Brecel (China Championship). On four of those seven occasions he was beaten by the eventual winner of that tournament. 

His first round opponent here Graeme Dott is not one of those players that has given O'Sullivan a good game this season. Dott has played the Rocket twice this season, firstly in the China Championship where he lost 5-0 and then in Cardiff recently where O'Sullivan was again victorious without dropping a frame. The Scotsman is here after a good couple of weeks in which he reached the German Masters and Snooker Shoot-Out finals. He is slightly fortunate to be here, after Cao Yupeng lost in the Gibraltar Open final, in a match that Cao needed to win to make it to Llandudno ahead of Dott. He has been playing much better this season than in previous years and he would have a good chance against most of the guys in this field playing how he has been. However, you feel like he would need a dip in the performance of O'Sullivan to make it through here. 

The corresponding match in this quarter sees Masters champion and International Championship runner-up Mark Allen take on World Open champion and recent Grand Prix runner-up Ding Junhui. These two have only met once in the last four and a half years amazingly, with Ding beating Allen 5-2 in the 2016 Shanghai Masters, a tournament he would go on to win. Between Ding's win at the World Open and his final a few weeks ago in Preston there was not much to shout about, though this was largely due to an eye problem. 

Allen meanwhile has not got going again since winning the Masters in January. He lost in the last 32 of the German Masters, Welsh Open and the World Grand Prix (a 32 man event), as well as losing in the first round of the Romanian Masters this week. The Northern Irishman is of course under huge pressure as well in the 'Race to the Crucible'. This match with Ding in itself is a massive one for the man provisionally 16th and on the bubble. A victory would put him ahead of Stuart Bingham (who is not here this week) at the very least, going into the China Open. Meanwhile, a defeat to Ding would leave the door open for Ryan Day who could overtake him and knock Allen to 17th going into the China Open, if Day were to win his first round match this week. If Ding produces the form that got him to the final of the Grand Prix here, then I think Allen could be in real trouble. 

Quarter choice: Ronnie O'Sullivan 

Quarter 2

First round draw: (Picks in bold)

Luca Brecel Vs Neil Robertson 

Judd Trump Vs Stephen Maguire

The second quarter is where we find China Championship winner Luca Brecel up against Scottish Open winner Neil Robertson. The pair have only ever met once and that was back in the 2015 World Grand Prix with Robertson winning 4-0, so that does not have too much relevance to this match. For Brecel, his recent form has fallen away dramatically in recent months, compared with the first half of the season. This week he was whitewashed in the first round of the Romanian Masters. This came after defeats in the last 128 of the Gibraltar Open, the last 64 in Cardiff, and another 4-0 defeat in the first round of the World Grand Prix. There are a few things this could be attributed to, including a shoulder injury that caused a couple of early exits and a couple of withdrawals towards the end of 2017. Meanwhile, he has also had a lot of cue trouble, though his original cue has since been returned to him and fixed ahead of the Welsh Open. However, the one thing that will have suffered in this time of shoulder and cue trouble is his confidence, to go from flying high to only winning two proper matches in 2018. 

Neil Robertson meanwhile regained his top 16 place after winning the Scottish Open (the week after he fell out of the top 16) but he too has not had much to shout about since. His failure to get going before Glasgow meant he was not in the Masters in January, and the week after winning in Scotland he failed to qualify for the German Masters. His first outing of 2018 outside of the Championship League came in mid-February at the World Grand Prix where he defeated David Gilbert before losing in the last 16 to Mark Selby. Despite barely putting a foot wrong against Ian Burns, he still lost out there in the last 64 of the Welsh Open and then exited in the first round in Romania. Therefore, it is hard to say that either one of these players has much form coming into this match. Brecel's performances are all over the place, while Robertson has lost a number of matches this season in which he has seemed to play pretty well, a trend he needs to fight, 

The corresponding match in this quarter is the one I believe will yield the man who goes on to make the semi-finals. The head to head does not look great for Maguire, who has lost his last four matches against Trump, two of which were this season. Maguire this season though has played very well indeed. Starting the season by making the Riga Masters final was a great building block, and he has since made semi-finals in the UK Championship and World Grand Prix, losing both to eventual winner O'Sullivan. He may have lost in the last 64 of the Welsh Open, but that was to eventual winner John Higgins in what was a very tough draw at that stage of the event. In the Romanian Masters this week he whitewashed Mark King with two centuries, before losing out narrowly in the last eight to Ali Carter. His season should really have filled him with confidence, and despite being just over £25,000 off the pace with only this event and the China Open to go, I still think Maguire is in a great position to qualify for the Crucible automatically. 

As for his opponent, Trump has blown hot and cold ever since losing 10-3 to O'Sullivan in November's Shanghai Masters final. Early exits in Northern Ireland and the UK Championship followed. He then made the semi-finals of the Scottish Open but was on the end of a huge upset as Cao Yupeng won 6-4. Further semi-finals followed in the Masters and German Masters but each of those eventual loses will have hurt massively, losing from well in front against Wilson before being thrashed by Williams in Berlin. In between those semi's was a loss to Jak Jones in China Open qualifying, which means his Players Championship title defence this week will be his last outing before the Crucible and you feel he really needs to lay down a marker after recent weeks. The left-hander fell at the first hurdle in Preston, before a last 64 exit in Cardiff. Even this week in Romania he thrashed Brecel with a couple of centuries, but could then not re-create that form in the quarter-final where he lost again to Wilson. 

All in all, you have to say that Maguire probably has the most form of the players in this section coming to Llandudno and he may not be a bad bet to go all the way this week. 

Quarter choice: Stephen Maguire

Quarter 3

First round draw: (Picks in bold) 

John Higgins Vs Anthony McGill 

Shaun Murphy Vs Kyren Wilson

As we head into the bottom half of the draw, it will feel like groundhog day for Anthony McGill as he once again has drawn John Higgins. The two have already met four times this season and Higgins has won each of those games. This fifth meeting, is the fourth at the first round stage of a 16-man invitational, as the two have previously faced off in this season's Champion of Champions, Masters and this week's Romanian Masters. McGill needs to stay positive and believe that he can beat Higgins on his day, but this must be incredibly difficult for a player who has lost to his upcoming opponent so many times in a short space of time. Otherwise, McGill has had a good season and should have confidence in his game, but he needs to find a way to beat Higgins if he is going to get on a run this week. 

Higgins meanwhile will be full of confidence after winning the Welsh Open a couple of weeks ago. Overall he has a very good season after winning in India earlier this season too and making the semi-finals of the Scottish Open, Masters and the Shanghai Masters, so it is no surprise he is seeded as high as number three. Given his record against McGill and his current form then he is certainly the front runner in this quarter. 

Meanwhile, the corresponding match in this quarter puts two players together who (at the time of writing) have managed seven finals this season between them. Murphy was a runner-up at the Paul Hunter Classic as well as the China and UK Championships while winning the Champion of Champions in November. As for Wilson, he has been a runner-up at the World Open, English Open and of course January's Masters, and he is still in the Romanian Masters, where victory against Ryan Day in today's semi-finals will put him into final number four of the season. 

The concern for Murphy coming into this week is the neck injury that forced him to withdraw from his Gibraltar Open defence last weekend, so it will be interesting to see if he is fully fit, because this is certainly not a tournament where you can ease yourself in. Wilson meanwhile is putting some decent results together in recent weeks. He made the quarters in Gibraltar before suffering a surprise loss to Lee Walker. He impressed me in the last 64 of the Welsh Open when I was in Cardiff, as he ran riot there, though he eventually lost in the last 16. This is potentially the closest looking of all the first round matches and I could see it going the distance, but thing Wilson's recent form may just edge it. 

Quarter choice: John Higgins

Quarter 4

First round draw: (Picks in bold) 

Mark Selby Vs Ryan Day

Mark Williams Vs Yan Bingtao 

The first match in this quarter is a vital one for Ryan Day. The Welshman could build himself a path to the Crucible with victory here against Mark Selby, having recently won the Gibraltar Open to boost his hopes. Having not qualified for the China Open, Day needs to be in the provisional top 16 after this event to have any chance but his victory in Gibraltar will give him a lot of confidence. That has already proved to be the case as he is still fighting for the Romanian Masters title (though that has no impact on his ranking) and at the time of writing he is preparing to face Kyren Wilson in the semi-finals. Prior to this season Day had never won a ranking title, but now has two under his belt as well as making the semi-finals in the UK Championship to record his best ever finish in a triple crown event, so he is certainly on a high right now. 

Mark Selby meanwhile is not having his best campaign ever. Despite winning the International Championship the current runaway world number one is *only* the seventh seed for this event. Aside from the Grand Prix where he made the last four, Selby's season since winning in Daqing at the beginning of November has been littered with early exits. Due to that, his confidence may well be heading in an opposite direction to Day's, as he searches for something positive in the next two events to take into his World title defence. 

The corresponding match in this quarter is a repeat of the Northern Ireland Open final between Yan Bingtao and Mark Williams. Williams was a narrow victor 9-8 on that occasion to deny Yan his first ranking title. It has been another incredible season for the youngster who is still only in his second season tour. Earlier on this year he also made the semi-finals of the International Championship, and was a quarter-finalist in the Welsh Open a couple of weeks ago. 

As for Williams, he bagged a second title of the season by easing to victory in the German Masters in early February to completely confirm that he is back to his very best. He may have lost in round of the Romanian Masters, the last 32 of the Welsh Open and the first round of the World Grand Prix in his last three outings, but I still believe he is in great form and a big contender for this title. It is no coincidence that he, O'Sullivan and Higgins are the top three seeds for this event, as the class of '92 have been the three best players this season by quite a margin. Yan will have to be at his very best to beat Williams in this one, though I think his Welsh world cup partner Day has a much better chance of defeating Williams if he can first defeat Selby. 

Quarter choice: Ryan Day

Tournament winner selection: Ronnie O'Sullivan

The tournament will be covered in full from Monday night to the conclusion next Sunday on ITV4 in the UK, with all matches in the first three rounds being played over the best-of-11 frames before a best-of-19 frame final.