2020 World Championship Thread

[CaledonianCraig]

First topic message reminder :

How about a thread to discuss the 2020 World Snooker Championships at The Crucible.

The delayed tournament starts today with a limited audience allowed in to watch the matches. The draw is as follows:-

Judd Trump (1) v Tom Ford
Yan Bingtao (16) v Elliot Slessor
Stephen Maguire (9) v Martin Gould
Kyren Wilson (8) - BYE
John Higgins (5) v Matthew Stevens
David Gilbert (12) v Kurt Maflin
Jack Lisowski (13) v Anthony McGill
Mark Allen (4) v Jamie Clarke
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Mark Williams (3) v Alan McManus
Stuart Bingham (14) v Ashley Carty
Ding Junhui (11) v Mark King
Ronnie O’Sullivan (6) v Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
Mark Selby (7) v Jordan Brown
Shaun Murphy (10) v Noppon Saengkham
Barry Hawkins (15) v Alexander Ursenbacher
Neil Robertson (2) v Liang Wenbo

Anthony Hamilton who suffers from asthma and qualified for the tournament has withdrawn due to COVID-19 and the fact there will be fans attending. This means Kyren Wilson gets a bye through to the Second Round.

This year there are five players making their Crucible debuts those being Elliot Slessor (England), Jordan Brown (Northern Ireland), Ashley Carty (England), Alexander Ursenbacher (Switzerland - the first Swiss player to play at the Crucible) and Jamie Clarke (Wales).

[CaledonianCraig]

Robertson in command at 12-9.

[CaledonianCraig]

And Neil Robertson completes a 13-9 win and set up a QF against Mark Selby.

[CaledonianCraig]

This evening's matches sees O'Sullivan and Ding resume at 8-8 and play to a finish. On the other table the needle match between Jamie Clarke and Anthony McGill resumes with Clarke leading 8-7.

[CaledonianCraig]

A couple of sloppy safety shots from Ding costs him the first frame. The Rocket leads 9-8. On the other table Clarke in first but can't finish the frame off. McGill in with a chance to steal.

[CaledonianCraig]

O'Sullivan cashing in on further Ding errors scoring heavy. He leads 10-8. On the other table McGill takes it to level the match up at 8-8 as he wins his sixth frame on the bounce.

[CaledonianCraig]

Ding gets in with early chances and looks like he has a frame winning break under way.

[CaledonianCraig]

Ding strikes back with a break of 88. O'Sullivan leads 10-9.

[CaledonianCraig]

O'Sullivan misses his second black off the spot tonight and Ding in with another chance. Clarke looking good to win the frame to go back ahead at 9-8.

[CaledonianCraig]

Ding misses a mid-range red by some way and O'Sullivan now in with a golden chance to go 11-9 up.

[CaledonianCraig]

O'Sullivan pinches that frame and leads 11-9.

[CaledonianCraig]

Clarke odds on to go 9-8 up.

[CaledonianCraig]

Clarke back ahead at 9-8 (barring snookers).

[CaledonianCraig]

And it is indeed 9-8 after a long drawn out frame of 48 minutes.

[CaledonianCraig]

o'Sullivan in with the first chance in the 21st frame but can't take it breaking down on 22. Ding, with an 81 break, pulls it back to 11-10.

[CaledonianCraig]

Ding's poor long game costing him. O'Sullivan in and on the verge of going 12-10 up. I can't see Ding winning three frames on the bounce from here.

[CaledonianCraig]

And a century for The Rocket and it is 12-10. Clarke with a great chance to re-establish a two frame lead at 10-8.

[CaledonianCraig]

But Clarke cannot take that chance.

[CaledonianCraig]

The Rocket beats Ding 13-10. He was just firing on more cylinders than Ding and deserved the win. Next up he will play Mark Williams.

[Guest]

Haha what a interview, Ronnie

[CaledonianCraig]

Thrilling gone midnight finish between Anthony McGill and Jamie Clarke that went to a final frame decider which McGill won after chances for both players. At the key moments McGill's safety pulled him through. You have to feel for Clarke as he led 8-2 and at 12-11 missed a pot that would have sealed the match. Good to see the needle gone (it appeared) at the end of the match though. I am sure a few weeks/months down the line or maybe even now they'll realise how silly it all was. McGill plays Kurt Maflin in the QF's which means we are assured a qualifier in the semis for the second year running.

The Quarter-Finals:-

Judd Trump (ENG) V Kyren Wilson (ENG) 10 am Monday Start
Kurt Maflin (NOR) V Anthony McGill (SCO) 2.30 pm Monday Start
Mark Williams (WAL) V Ronnie O'Sullivan (ENG) 2.30 pm Monday Start
Mark Selby (ENG) V Neil Robertson (AUS) 10 am Monday Start

[Duty281]

Haha, yes great interview. Always good to see him with a smile and a laugh. He is one of the few players left with any real personality, maybe Ali Carter or Mark Allen as well, the rest seem to be PR-trained drones.

McGill edged out Clarke 13-12 - real disappointment for Clarke who was something like 8-2 up at one point (I think). The second round games, all in all, were remarkably close with two final frame deciders, three won by 13-11, one won 13-10, and two at 13-9.

Still can't see beyond Trump to win the whole thing. He'll improve as the tournament wears on and he'll pleased with the top half of the draw. Wilson does have the potential to upset him admittedly, can't see Maflin/McGill doing it, especially over the longer distance. The bottom half of the draw - Williams/RoS/Selby/Robertson - is anyone's guess.

[CaledonianCraig]

My predictions for the Quarter-Finals:-

Judd Trump 13-11 Kyren Wilson (I just feel Trump will have a bit too much for Wilson but I would not be surprised if Wilson won. He has a great all-round game)
Kurt Maflin 13-7 Anthony McGill (Maflin was mightily impressive against Higgins whereas McGill is not the player he was when he first came on the scene)
Mark Williams 9-13 Ronnie O'Sullivan (Williams is not quite in the form or mindset I feel to upset Ronnie)
Mark Selby 12-13 Neil Robertson (Selby has improved as the tournament has gone on and his match play snooker I can see giving Robertson mighty problems. However, Robertson was my tip at the outset so will stick by him)

[eirebilly]

I, personally, am sick to the back teeth of ROS. He really does the game no good at all. Lovely to watch but my god he is a train wreck when he opens his mouth...

[Soul Requiem]

He's not wrong though is he, there aren't many young players making a mark in the game, the ages of those left in the tournament are;

30, 28, 29, 36, 45, 44, 37 & 38 with an average of 36 which kind of backs up his comments.

[eirebilly]

Ok.

What is the difference then?

Lets look at the basic facts, 25-30 years ago snooker was pretty much at its heights and there were snooker halls everywhere. Kids, like myself, used to hop school and go and play in these halls. More people playing, far more competition and helped developed young players (amateurs etc).

in the last 15-20 years, snooker has not been a very popular sport (with the exception of China) and i would hazard a guess that 80% of the snooker halls that were around when he and many others were coming through are no longer in existence.

When snooker (If snooker) ever regains its popularity (of the 70's, 80's and 90's) then i am sure that this will help with seeing more skill coming through.

Ronnie needs to get in touch with reality before opening his mouth at times. He does the game no good by saying things like this.

[CaledonianCraig]

Well at these last two world championships a qualifier has made it through to the semis so negates one of the things he said.

I do tend to more blame the interviewee. We all know by now what Ronnie is like in interviews. It should just have been left to simple questions like how they felt he played? What was it like with no crowd? What he thinks of next match? And that is it. Thank you and goodbye. But no they went digging and they got what they were looking for.

[eirebilly]

There is that element of poor interviewing technique, i will agree there CC but Ronnie simply cant help himself.

That said though, he does generate front page of the BBC for his comments so that is generating interest in snooker again i guess...

[Soul Requiem]

Participation might play a part but the emphasis on break building is the bigger issue for me; look at Steve Davis who was dominant during the 80's and you'll see he had 355 career centuries compared to say 457 for Mark Allen, it's pretty clear who the better player was.

[eirebilly]

How is it clear who the better player was? Different tables, different surroundings/conditions and different pressures.

[Soul Requiem]

How is it clear who the better player was? Different tables, different surroundings/conditions and different pressures.

[CaledonianCraig]

Participation might play a part but the emphasis on break building is the bigger issue for me; look at Steve Davis who was dominant during the 80's and you'll see he had 355 career centuries compared to say 457 for Mark Allen, it's pretty clear who the better player was.

There are more than one way to skin a cat. It is not all about century breaks. It is about winning frames. And in any case the sport has changed since Davis' years. Back in the 80s players were much more safety conscious so frames would go scrappy making century breaks harder to come by. Plus the tables were coarser clothed so more difficult to get cueball reaction.

[eirebilly]

How is it clear who the better player was? Different tables, different surroundings/conditions and different pressures.

?

[Soul Requiem]

How is it clear who the better player was? Different tables, different surroundings/conditions and different pressures.

?

I'm intrigued by this argument you can make for Mark Allen being a better player than Steve Davis was?

[eirebilly]

I am not making any claim at all? You made the claim, i asked the question?

[CaledonianCraig]

Kyren Wilson off to a good start against Judd Trump. Building a frame winning break in the opener.

[eirebilly]

I do like Wilson, he has a very nice cue action but i am not sure it will be enough to see of Trump.

[CaledonianCraig]

Soul Requim, of course Davis was the better player than Mark Allen - less career centuries yes and as you say there is far more emphasis today on break building. The game is a different beast today than from the 70s and 80s. Hendry came along and changed that emphasis and the sport changed as a result as others had to adapt to compete in my opinion. And the younger players breaking through came in with their game already adapted.

[CaledonianCraig]

Wilson leads 1-0. Selby on a break on the other table after Robertson missed a chance.

[Duty281]

My predictions for the Quarter-Finals:-

Judd Trump 13-11 Kyren Wilson (I just feel Trump will have a bit too much for Wilson but I would not be surprised if Wilson won. He has a great all-round game)
Kurt Maflin 13-7 Anthony McGill  (Maflin was mightily impressive against Higgins whereas McGill is not the player he was when he first came on the scene)
Mark Williams 9-13 Ronnie O'Sullivan (Williams is not quite in the form or mindset I feel to upset Ronnie)
Mark Selby 12-13 Neil Robertson (Selby has improved as the tournament has gone on and his match play snooker I can see giving Robertson mighty problems. However, Robertson was my tip at the outset so will stick by him)

Trump 13-10 Wilson (Wouldn't be massively surprised to see an upset, Wilson does have a decent H2H record v Trump, but the longer format favours the champ)
Maflin 13-8 McGill (McGill's struggled through this far, Maflin's in better form)
Williams 12-13 RoS (50-50 coin flip for me, RoS is still going through long patches of poor play, but Williams hasn't exactly sparkled in this tournament so far)
Selby 13-11 Robertson (Robbo's been quite impressive, but I think Selby's tactical game will defeat him)

[CaledonianCraig]

Selby cannot take it. Frame in the balance. Scrappy start.

[CaledonianCraig]

Trump given a chance to show us what nick he is in.

[CaledonianCraig]

And Trump shows us with a great break of 88. It is 1-1.

[Soul Requiem]

Soul Requim, of course Davis was the better player than Mark Allen - less career centuries yes and as you say there is far more emphasis today on break building. The game is a different beast today than from the 70s and 80s. Hendry came along and changed that emphasis and the sport changed as a result as others had to adapt to compete in my opinion. And the younger players breaking through came in with their game already adapted.

Hendry whilst rightly remembered as a fantastic break builder was also a brilliant tactical player at the same time, he is the bridge between the two but whilst before him the emphasis was more on tactical play after him the emphasis is on break building hence why the older guys like Ronnie, Higgins and Williams are still competing so well. Selby and Hawkins should be an example to young players coming through, both are capable break builders but they're both great match players over the longer format too where they routinely beat seemingly more talented players. I mentioned it before but there is a big difference between winning a short format best of 9 tournament compared to going deep at the world championship where you do need a tactical game; Trump has improved immeasurably in that regard in recent years and without it he'd be a nearly man instead of the man. Kyren Wilson is a very good match player.

[CaledonianCraig]

The first frame on the other table has gone tactical. Could be a marathon.

[CaledonianCraig]

Soul Requim, of course Davis was the better player than Mark Allen - less career centuries yes and as you say there is far more emphasis today on break building. The game is a different beast today than from the 70s and 80s. Hendry came along and changed that emphasis and the sport changed as a result as others had to adapt to compete in my opinion. And the younger players breaking through came in with their game already adapted.

Hendry whilst rightly remembered as a fantastic break builder was also a brilliant tactical player at the same time, he is the bridge between the two but whilst before him the emphasis was more on tactical play after him the emphasis is on break building hence why the older guys like Ronnie, Higgins and Williams are still competing so well. Selby and Hawkins should be an example to young players coming through, both are capable break builders but they're both great match players over the longer format too where they routinely beat seemingly more talented players. I mentioned it before but there is a big difference between winning a short format best of 9 tournament compared to going deep at the world championship where you do need a tactical game; Trump has improved immeasurably in that regard in recent years and without it he'd be a nearly man instead of the man. Kyren Wilson is a very good match player.

Good post.

To succeed at snooker (especially at The Crucible) you must have a great safety game as well as be a top break builder. There have been many great break builders in recent years who have not reached world title status because their safety game does not cut the mustard - Trump toiled for years and failed until he tightened up and Ding has suffered because of this. O'Sullivan has suffered at times for not bringing his best match play game to town otherwise he'd surely have won double the world titles he has. That is why Ronnie nearly always has fallen foul at The Crucible to top notch match players who can break build and have a great safety game.

[CaledonianCraig]

Trump looking much better today. In again and scoring heavily. A great break of 76 sees him go 2-1 up.

[CaledonianCraig]

Approaching 50 minutes play between Selby and Robertson and the first frame goes on with one red left on the table.

[CaledonianCraig]

Over 52 minutes now and this opener between Robertson and Selby is now the longest frame of the tournament so far.

[CaledonianCraig]

Selby takes the first frame in a frame almost 59 minutes long.

[CaledonianCraig]

A scrappier fourth frame and Kyren Wilson takes it to go level at 2-2 against Trump as they head to their mid-session interval.

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