We are halfway through the group stages of the Champion of Champions event at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry with two of the semi-finalists determined and on Wednesday we will find out the third man into the last four when Group 4 is played out.
This is another top quality group with the world champion Mark Selby heading the way but English Open champion Liang Wenbo will fancy his chances as will Mark Allen, the Players Championship winner, and Joe Perry who although not in as a tournament winner is a very accomplished player in his own right.
Mark Selby vs Liang Wenbo
The first match of the day is a rematch of a battle from the International Championship a couple of weeks ago which Selby won in a deciding frame and that in many ways suggests this one will be a tight match and I tend to believe that is the case.
Both men made fairly early exits in the China Championship and so there isn’t the kind of advantage we’ve seen earlier in the week which is a positive so it comes down to who will be better on the day. Given how close it is likely to be there is a case for making Wenbo decent value but I prefer another bet.
Liang Wenbo has made the highest break in three of the last four meetings against Selby including in a couple of matches that he has lost in that time and that isn’t a surprise because Selby’s strength is in the scrappier frames and the scoring frames should favour Liang so at 11/8 I think the best bet is on the Chinese star to make the highest break.
Mark Allen vs Joe Perry
Two solid professionals do battle for a place in the group final later in the evening when Mark Allen faces Joe Perry. Mark Allen looked fantastic in the China Championship until he ran into John Higgins in the semi-final and if he has the early tournament form with him here then he has every chance.
Perry went out in the first round of the China Championship last week so he has had long enough to make it back and get ready for this tournament. He has been in pretty decent form in recent times without getting the results he has deserved but that can change at any time.
I’m already on Perry to win the tournament so I’m going to let that ride without getting involved in what I perceive to be a high chance of a tight match.
Group Outright
As you would expect Mark Selby is the favourite for this group and you can’t argue too much with that. I’ve already taken the value in Joe Perry outright and I’m leaving it at that as you can make a case for all four men in this group. I think Perry has every chance but I don’t need to back him again.
Tips
Back L.Wenbo Highest Break vs M.Selby for a 4/10 stake at 2.38 with Titanbet
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