Wuxi Classic 2013 - Discussion

[rich45]

Thankfully Milkins fell over the line against Hamilton...should be a more open semi-final tomorrow afternoon as a result. Hoping for a Higgins v Stevens match up in the other semi-final,. I am all set for a relaxing weekend of snooker watching!

Also, really enjoying the snooker on the livesport website (available in Japan) because there is no commentary...bliss!

[mythman69]

Also, really enjoying the snooker on the livesport website (available in Japan) because there is no commentary...bliss!

I agree and also I don't need to stay up all night to watch it all . . .

[rich45]

Got my wish, nice semi-final line up. I think Higgins has to be the favourite, but it should be a good final if Robertson also gets through.

[Odrl]

I don't expect any surprises tomorrow...

Robertson will be looking to settle the score with Milkins, after losing to him in the 1st round of the World Championship. He is very competitive and sometimes makes things personal, but it seems to work for him, as he has managed to turn some rivalries in his favour in the past. Also, he is obviously playing very well this week, which wasn't really the case at the WC. He responded tremendously after being put under pressure by Cao, particularly in the last two frames which he never really looked like losing. Milkins is now getting used to these matches, appearing at the business end of tournaments quite often these days, so he can't really be underestimated. He is a great potter and scorer once he gets into his rhythm, but not as comfortable when he is kept away from the table, like he was towards the end of his match against Hamilton. I think Robertson in this kind of form will have too much for him and I can see him winning this one 6-2.

I think Higgins is an even stronger favourite in the other match... He has only dropped four frames in four matches so far, and that's including the match against an in-form Perry. I thought he could be in trouble in that match, but he applied the pressure early on and didn't really allow Perry to get going. He got over the line in a pretty underwhelming way in the end, after losing his concentration a bit, but it was still fairly comfortable. I think Milkins might have been a trickier opponent for him, but for some reason I think Stevens is the weakest player of the four still remaining. It has been a typical consistent week from Stevens, the kind he has been producing quite a lot over the last two seasons, but he isn't really playing any one-visit stuff. He has the experience to scrap through against most players, but once he gets to this stage of events, the likes of Higgins are waiting... They've played a lot in some of the minor short-format tournaments recently, but the last time Stevens beat Higgins in a match of at least medium length was more than a decade ago. I don't necessarily think the scoreline will be too one-sided, but I do expect Higgins to prevail in one way or another, perhaps a 6-3.

Now that only two days of this tournament remain, I can say that the new format has shown some advantages, particularly giving some of the Chinese players the chance to play more matches at the venue, rather than getting filtered out in the qualifiers in the UK. We've also seen a variety of interesting players, rather than just the usual faces...

On the other hand, the event does have a kind of a PTC feel to it, which isn't really something I like. Reaching a ranking quarter-final should be a great moment for someone like David Morris, the biggest success of his career, but I can't help feeling he would have had more satisfaction if he had achieved it in the old format, by beating a couple of top players on his way as a qualifier, although he did beat Carter of course. Looking at the four semi-finalists, they've all had to play five matches to get here, and amazingly, they haven't played a single top16 player between them! This is the first tournament under this format, so I don't really have any patterns to go by, but somehow I don't see that happening again any time soon. :wink:

[mythman69]

Looks like it is best of 11 frames . . .

[rich45]

...should be a more open semi-final tomorrow afternoon

What was I saying.........

[mythman69]

It is certainly a long first frame . . . .

[rich45]

Cracking red from Milkins to split the black/pink, then spoiled by an awful shot when playing away from a touching ball. Solid from Robertson who seems like a strong favourite to progress.

[mythman69]

4 - 0 to Robertson . . . looking good

[coomsey76]

Could this be the start of the come back from Milkins??

[mythman69]

nice shot on the yellow by Robertson . . . 5 - 2 now

[coomsey76]

Well played Neil Robertson..... Some pretty solid snooker played there!!

[mythman69]

Well played Neil Robertson..... Some pretty solid snooker played there!!

Fingers crossed for the final . . .

[PatBlock]

This is looking rather ominous for Matthew...

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[mythman69]

This is looking rather ominous for Matthew...

Yep, I think it is going to be a Robertson versus Higgins final . . .

Hopefully Robertson by a few frames . . .