The first full ranking event of 2018 also presents the penultimate chance for players to make a move on the World Grand Prix qualification list, which concludes next week at the end of the Snooker Shoot-Out.
Among the qualifiers for Berlin are World number one Mark Selby, recent Masters champion Mark Allen, defending champion Anthony Hamilton and 2016 champion Martin Gould.
Top 16 seeds in Judd Trump, Ding Junhui, Shaun Murphy, Barry Hawkins, Mark Williams, Ryan Day and Liang Wenbo are also present in a strong field for the five days in Berlin with an increased £80,000 on offer for this year's champion.
Ronnie O'Sullivan withdraw from qualifying, while Scottish Open champion lost in the last 64 just prior to Christmas along with Masters runner-up Kyren Wilson and seeds 10, 11 and 13 in Luca Brecel, Ali Carter and Anthony McGill.
Quarter 1
Last 32 draw: (Picks in bold)
Anthony Hamilton Vs Jimmy Robertson
Martin Gould Vs Gary Wilson
Mark Williams Vs Fergal O'Brien
Mark Allen Vs Matthew Selt
The last two German Masters champions feature in the top quarter of the draw as well as reigning Northern Ireland Open champion Mark Williams and Masters champion Mark Allen. Williams played well to overcome Mark Selby in the Masters recently but he has a difficult draw with the possibility of facing the in-form Allen in the last 16. It's difficult to call that section given the form both Allen and Williams are in of late though with Allen on a high right now after his Masters win, I think more big runs and tournament wins could be on the horizon for him.
Meanwhile, defending champion Anthony Hamilton faces a tough tie against Jimmy Robertson. Robertson has had a decent campaign this season making the last 32 on a number of occasions, but not getting beyond that hurdle as often as he would like, so he will be keen to get past that stage here in Berlin. Hamilton has had a tough time of things this season. He withdrew from a number of matches earlier in the season because of his back, and that may have still been troubling him during first round exits in the UK Championships, Shanghai Masters and the first three home nations events. On Saturday, he had to come from 5-1 down to overcome low ranked David John 6-5 in China Open qualifying so he is clearly still struggling a little and with that in mind Robertson is more than capable of bring a premature end to Hamilton's title defence.
My first quarter choice though is the 2016 champion who made the semi-finals of his title defence last season. Martin Gould's form is really bubbling up nicely in the last few months. Just recently he made his first competitive 147 break in group 6 of the Championship League, which he also went on to win. Prior to the Christmas break he really hit top form making the quarter-finals of the UK Championship before running into Ronnie O'Sullivan, as well as making the Shanghai Masters quarter-finals and the semi-finals of the International Championship (where he lost to eventual winner Mark Selby). This form is not too dissimilar to the sort of form Gould was in when he came to the Tempodrome in 2016 and ended up walking away with his maiden ranking event win. You certainly would not be surprised to see Gould in the last eight given that section of the draw, and from there he could well pick up a second title.
Meanwhile, defending champion Anthony Hamilton faces a tough tie against Jimmy Robertson. Robertson has had a decent campaign this season making the last 32 on a number of occasions, but not getting beyond that hurdle as often as he would like, so he will be keen to get past that stage here in Berlin. Hamilton has had a tough time of things this season. He withdrew from a number of matches earlier in the season because of his back, and that may have still been troubling him during first round exits in the UK Championships, Shanghai Masters and the first three home nations events. On Saturday, he had to come from 5-1 down to overcome low ranked David John 6-5 in China Open qualifying so he is clearly still struggling a little and with that in mind Robertson is more than capable of bring a premature end to Hamilton's title defence.
My first quarter choice though is the 2016 champion who made the semi-finals of his title defence last season. Martin Gould's form is really bubbling up nicely in the last few months. Just recently he made his first competitive 147 break in group 6 of the Championship League, which he also went on to win. Prior to the Christmas break he really hit top form making the quarter-finals of the UK Championship before running into Ronnie O'Sullivan, as well as making the Shanghai Masters quarter-finals and the semi-finals of the International Championship (where he lost to eventual winner Mark Selby). This form is not too dissimilar to the sort of form Gould was in when he came to the Tempodrome in 2016 and ended up walking away with his maiden ranking event win. You certainly would not be surprised to see Gould in the last eight given that section of the draw, and from there he could well pick up a second title.
Best of the rest: Jimmy Robertson
Quarter choice: Martin Gould
Quarter 2
Last 32 draw: (Picks in bold)
Ding Junhui Vs Michael Georgiou
Ricky Walden Vs Jack Lisowski
Joe Perry Vs Yu De Lu
Judd Trump Vs Ben Woollaston
Former champion Ding Junhui features in the second quarter, but his form is still very patchy after some of the eye trouble he had earlier in the season. His route through the qualifiers in December was not quite plain sailing, and he has only played once since - losing to Ryan Day in round one of the Masters. If he is not on top form in Berlin, Michael Georgiou could certainly take advantage and cause an upset.
Judd Trump is another of the headline acts in this second section and he will be looking to bounce back from a couple of recent setbacks. After losing from 5-2 ahead against Kyren Wilson in the Masters semi-finals he then lost 6-5 to Jak Jones in the China Open qualifiers. His first round opponent Ben Woollaston has beaten Shaun Murphy and Neil Robertson in the last two years at this stage of the competition so there is no reason why he cannot do it a third time this year.
Joe Perry showed some decent form just prior to Christmas making the last 16 of the Northern Ireland Open and the quarter-finals of the UK Championship. Given that some of the other players in this section are not in the best of form, Perry could be the one to take advantage and have a deep run in this competition, as he is certainly still good enough to get back into the top 16.
My second quarter choice is another player who will be looking to get back into the top 16. Ricky Walden has started coming back to form in recent tournaments. Just before Christmas he made the quarter-finals of the Scottish Open and the last 16 of the UK Championships before losing to the runner-up in both tournaments. Walden's first round opponent Jack Lisowski is certainly a tough one, but somebody that Walden overcame at the last 64 stage in Northern Ireland just after Lisowski's career best run to the semi-finals in the Shanghai Masters. In the recent Championship League Walden reached the final of Group 5 and the semi-final in Group 6 so he should be sharp as well coming into this one and that may play in Walden's hands in the first couple of rounds here. Like Perry, he is far better than his current ranking and is more than capable of having a big week that could propel him back towards the top 16.
Judd Trump is another of the headline acts in this second section and he will be looking to bounce back from a couple of recent setbacks. After losing from 5-2 ahead against Kyren Wilson in the Masters semi-finals he then lost 6-5 to Jak Jones in the China Open qualifiers. His first round opponent Ben Woollaston has beaten Shaun Murphy and Neil Robertson in the last two years at this stage of the competition so there is no reason why he cannot do it a third time this year.
Joe Perry showed some decent form just prior to Christmas making the last 16 of the Northern Ireland Open and the quarter-finals of the UK Championship. Given that some of the other players in this section are not in the best of form, Perry could be the one to take advantage and have a deep run in this competition, as he is certainly still good enough to get back into the top 16.
My second quarter choice is another player who will be looking to get back into the top 16. Ricky Walden has started coming back to form in recent tournaments. Just before Christmas he made the quarter-finals of the Scottish Open and the last 16 of the UK Championships before losing to the runner-up in both tournaments. Walden's first round opponent Jack Lisowski is certainly a tough one, but somebody that Walden overcame at the last 64 stage in Northern Ireland just after Lisowski's career best run to the semi-finals in the Shanghai Masters. In the recent Championship League Walden reached the final of Group 5 and the semi-final in Group 6 so he should be sharp as well coming into this one and that may play in Walden's hands in the first couple of rounds here. Like Perry, he is far better than his current ranking and is more than capable of having a big week that could propel him back towards the top 16.
Best of the rest: Joe Perry
Quarter choice: Ricky Walden
Quarter 3
Last 32 draw: (Picks in bold)
Mark Davis Vs Niu Zhuang
Ryan Day Vs Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
David Gilbert Vs Mark Joyce
Shaun Murphy Vs Alan McManus
Quarter three is one that has already seen a couple of top 16 casualties with Ali Carter losing in the qualifiers in December and Ronnie O'Sullivan withdrawing from those matches. That has opened the door for someone like Mark Davis who is looking to boost what has been an average season for him. This is the furthest he has been in any tournament since beating John Higgins to make the last 16 of the European Masters nearly four months ago, with a number of first round exits coming in the time since.
Ryan Day will be eyeing a big week here to make strides towards getting back into the top 16 in the provisional Crucible seedings list, especially after taking a hit on Monday morning. Losing 6-3 to Lu Haotian in China Open qualifying means his destiny is out of his hands and that he will have to recover the deficit before Beijing. His first round opponent Thepchaiya Un-Nooh looked in good form in his China Open qualifier, and is someone that is more than capable of not only beating Day, but having a big run into the latter stages of this competition. However, the one thing that he does not seem to have is the consistency in his game, often going from top gear in one match to reverse in the next.
David Gilbert against Mark Joyce is one of the toughest first round matches to call and the head-to-head does not offer a great deal to help either. They have played each other twice this season, with Gilbert winning 5-0 in Shanghai before Joyce won 6-4 at the UK Championships. It has to be said that Joyce has looked in the better form of the two recently. He could easily have made the semi-finals of the UK Championship as well as making the last 16 at the International Championship and the quarter-finals of the Paul Hunter Classic. Gilbert meanwhile only managed one win from six matches and was relegated from the Championship League recently in the first group he entered. He also fell in the first round of the Scottish Open as well as suffering a few last 64 exits prior to Christmas.
The stand out name in this quarter though is Shaun Murphy. The Magician has made four finals this season already, including one in Germany at the Paul Hunter Classic and as a finalist here in 2015 he will be keen to go one better as he returns to the Tempodrome. Murphy was unlucky to fall in a tight Masters quarter-final to Trump, otherwise he could well have made final number 5 of the season at the Ally Pally. With the form he has shown in making the final of the UK and winning the Champion of Champions you have to think that there could be more finals to come between now and the seasons end a possibly another trophy or two. His draw is tricky but he would not have to play someone seeded in the top 16 until at least the quarter-finals and maybe even the semi-finals, should he make it through the early rounds. Looking at the line-up for this week Murphy is certainly a top contender for the title.
Ryan Day will be eyeing a big week here to make strides towards getting back into the top 16 in the provisional Crucible seedings list, especially after taking a hit on Monday morning. Losing 6-3 to Lu Haotian in China Open qualifying means his destiny is out of his hands and that he will have to recover the deficit before Beijing. His first round opponent Thepchaiya Un-Nooh looked in good form in his China Open qualifier, and is someone that is more than capable of not only beating Day, but having a big run into the latter stages of this competition. However, the one thing that he does not seem to have is the consistency in his game, often going from top gear in one match to reverse in the next.
David Gilbert against Mark Joyce is one of the toughest first round matches to call and the head-to-head does not offer a great deal to help either. They have played each other twice this season, with Gilbert winning 5-0 in Shanghai before Joyce won 6-4 at the UK Championships. It has to be said that Joyce has looked in the better form of the two recently. He could easily have made the semi-finals of the UK Championship as well as making the last 16 at the International Championship and the quarter-finals of the Paul Hunter Classic. Gilbert meanwhile only managed one win from six matches and was relegated from the Championship League recently in the first group he entered. He also fell in the first round of the Scottish Open as well as suffering a few last 64 exits prior to Christmas.
The stand out name in this quarter though is Shaun Murphy. The Magician has made four finals this season already, including one in Germany at the Paul Hunter Classic and as a finalist here in 2015 he will be keen to go one better as he returns to the Tempodrome. Murphy was unlucky to fall in a tight Masters quarter-final to Trump, otherwise he could well have made final number 5 of the season at the Ally Pally. With the form he has shown in making the final of the UK and winning the Champion of Champions you have to think that there could be more finals to come between now and the seasons end a possibly another trophy or two. His draw is tricky but he would not have to play someone seeded in the top 16 until at least the quarter-finals and maybe even the semi-finals, should he make it through the early rounds. Looking at the line-up for this week Murphy is certainly a top contender for the title.
Best of the rest: Mark Davis
Quarter choice: Shaun Murphy
Quarter 4
Last 32 draw: (Picks in bold)
Barry Hawkins Vs Graeme Dott
Mei Xiwen Vs Hammad Miah
Liang Wenbo Vs Tom Ford
Mark Selby Vs Xiao Guodong
The bottom quarter is where we find World Champion and 2015 German Master Mark Selby. The world number one has been pretty quiet since winning the International Championship at the start of November however. Early exits in the UK Championship and Masters as well as not appearing in Scotland or Northern Ireland mean that Selby has not played huge amounts either, and should be pretty fresh coming to Berlin. His first round opponent Xiao Guodong is more than capable of an upset, as Selby found out in the last 32 of the English Open, where Xiao came out on top 4-1. As well as that the former ranking finalist reached the Scottish Open quarter-finals before losing 5-4 to eventual winner Neil Robertson, having already beaten Marco Fu along the way that week. He also reached the last 16 of the UK Championships and overcame Ali Carter to score another top 16 scalp in Belfast. If Xiao keeps up this form, we certainly have a cracking match to look forward to there and the winner could easily go deep into the tournament.
Barry Hawkins against Graeme Dott is another intriguing round one tie. Hawkins has been in poor form this season, and on Monday evening he had to recover from 3-0 down just to qualify for the China Open. He did not do a lot wrong in the first round of the Masters, losing 6-4 to the eventual runner-up, though he did also lose in round in Glasgow and Belfast, as well as suffering a shock 6-0 exit in the last 32 of the UK Championships. Dott meanwhile has had a couple of decent runs, showing he can still do it on the big stage by thrashing Trump in the UK Championships, as well as reaching the last 16 in Shanghai and the China Championships. Dott is a twice semi-finalist at the Tempodrome, most recently in 2016 - beating Hawkins along the way - and his record here is hardly a surprise as he still relishes playing in the big matches against top players.
Mei Xiwen versus Hammad Miah is a rather unexpected last 32 tie, with Mei coming through December's qualifiers for the loss of just two frames against Michael Holt and Robbie Williams, while Hammad saw off Luca Brecel and Zhao Xintong. With both players currently chasing the top 64, (or at least the top eight on the one-year money list not already qualified for the 2018/2019) in order to stay on tour so this could be a big week for both players.
My final quarter selection though is another player who needs a big week, as he targets a place in the upcoming World Grand Prix. Liang Wenbo is currently two spots outside on the qualifying list and needs to make at least the quarter-finals in Berlin, as he has not entered the Shoot-Out - which is the final event to qualify for Preston. An average season from Liang and a few early season non-entries has left Liang in this situation and he faces someone in Tom Ford in the last 32 who is also chasing a Grand Prix place. Again Ford could do with making the quarter-finals to put himself in pole position to be heading to Preston. The last two times these two have played it has gone the distance, most recently in the English Open when Ford led 3-1 before Liang came back to 4-3 as well as making a 147 break along the way. If this sort of heavy scoring (Liang also had the highest break in the Masters despite losing in round one) makes an appearance in Berlin, then he could repeat or even better his best run here, making the semi-finals in 2015.
Barry Hawkins against Graeme Dott is another intriguing round one tie. Hawkins has been in poor form this season, and on Monday evening he had to recover from 3-0 down just to qualify for the China Open. He did not do a lot wrong in the first round of the Masters, losing 6-4 to the eventual runner-up, though he did also lose in round in Glasgow and Belfast, as well as suffering a shock 6-0 exit in the last 32 of the UK Championships. Dott meanwhile has had a couple of decent runs, showing he can still do it on the big stage by thrashing Trump in the UK Championships, as well as reaching the last 16 in Shanghai and the China Championships. Dott is a twice semi-finalist at the Tempodrome, most recently in 2016 - beating Hawkins along the way - and his record here is hardly a surprise as he still relishes playing in the big matches against top players.
Mei Xiwen versus Hammad Miah is a rather unexpected last 32 tie, with Mei coming through December's qualifiers for the loss of just two frames against Michael Holt and Robbie Williams, while Hammad saw off Luca Brecel and Zhao Xintong. With both players currently chasing the top 64, (or at least the top eight on the one-year money list not already qualified for the 2018/2019) in order to stay on tour so this could be a big week for both players.
My final quarter selection though is another player who needs a big week, as he targets a place in the upcoming World Grand Prix. Liang Wenbo is currently two spots outside on the qualifying list and needs to make at least the quarter-finals in Berlin, as he has not entered the Shoot-Out - which is the final event to qualify for Preston. An average season from Liang and a few early season non-entries has left Liang in this situation and he faces someone in Tom Ford in the last 32 who is also chasing a Grand Prix place. Again Ford could do with making the quarter-finals to put himself in pole position to be heading to Preston. The last two times these two have played it has gone the distance, most recently in the English Open when Ford led 3-1 before Liang came back to 4-3 as well as making a 147 break along the way. If this sort of heavy scoring (Liang also had the highest break in the Masters despite losing in round one) makes an appearance in Berlin, then he could repeat or even better his best run here, making the semi-finals in 2015.
Best of the rest: Graeme Dott
Quarter choice: Liang Wenbo
Tournament winner selection: Shaun Murphy
The event will be covered on Eurosport TV and Eurosport Player once again and with plenty of top stars involved it should be a fascinating five days of action in Berlin.
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