The Northern Ireland Open is down to the quarter final stage and all four matches of play take place over two sessions of action inside the Waterfront Hall in Belfast on what promises to be yet another tasty day of snooker.
The format has gone up now so you would expect the better players to progress from here on in, but we’ve had enough of these Home Nations events to do that they still don’t play out to that rule. Five of the very best in the world have made it through so we have some fascinating matches to enjoy.
Afternoon Session
Judd Trump vs Anthony Hamilton
The natives of Pottingham will stop what they are doing in the opening quarter final of the day when their man Anthony Hamilton takes on the defending and world champion Judd Trump for a place in the semi-final of the tournament.
Trump has powered his way into this match dropping just four matches en route to this stage whereas Hamilton has had to battle pretty hard, although in Dave Gilbert and Kyren Wilson he saw off two top level opponents on Thursday which should give him a lot of confidence to take into this match. Trump has largely had an easier time of it although his win over Yan Bingtao on Thursday night could be significant. Trump is a huge favourite here but Hamilton won’t go without a fight. I’m tempted by the Sheriff on the handicap but better bets lie elsewhere.
Mark Selby vs John Higgins
Potentially the pick of the quarter finals is the one between two top drawer former world champions as Mark Selby goes up against John Higgins for a spot in the semi-finals against the winner of the first game of the day.
Selby keeps writing off his chances of it but he remains in the hunt for the £1 million bonus but you would have to suggest this is his biggest challenge to that thus far as Higgins is showing signs of being back to his very best. These two have met 28 times previously and Selby leads 15-13 but interestingly Higgins has won more frames in those battles. This is a real 50:50 contest. I fancy Higgins to win it but Selby isn’t going to go without a fight so over 7.5 frames is the way to enjoy this battle between two of the best there has ever been.
Open up an 888sport account before Black Friday, bet £10 and get £40 in free bets! Fantastic offer!! Click the image above to bet. New accounts only. Use code Football. 18+ T&Cs apply. Gamble Aware.
Evening Session
Shaun Murphy vs Ronnie O’Sullivan
Certainly the pick of the evening quarter finals and possibly the best of the lot is the one on the main table in the evening session when the China Championship winner Shaun Murphy goes up against the greatest the game has seen in Ronnie O’Sullivan.
Murphy has been in great touch throughout the season and has looked to that level again this week whereas O’Sullivan hasn’t been fantastic, but there is no doubt that as each match has gone on he has gotten better and I would expect to see his best performance here. There was once a time when Murphy was overawed playing the Rocket but I don’t think that is the case anymore so I’m expecting another close match here, with Murphy potentially nicking it. You can get odds against that Murphy wins four frames which is nice enough as if O’Sullivan does force a decider and up his game in it we’ll have collected by then. I’ll play Murphy +1.5 frames as if anyone runs away with this I expect it to be him.
Joe Perry vs Alexander Ursenbacher
There is one quarter final on the streamed table over the course of the day and it is this one between a Joe Perry who is fighting hard to get as deep as possible here in the race for The Masters and the Swiss star Alexander Ursenbacher who will be chasing a first title at this level this weekend.
Both these men have played well to make it this far. You could argue that Perry has had a nice draw having not faced anyone in the top 16 thus far but he has had a couple of tricky tests. Ursenbacher has beaten Stuart Bingham and Mark Allen on Thursday to get here so he is clearly playing well. That makes me think the Swiss man could be decent value here but Perry is solid as a rock. I might get involved in Ursenbacher if he starts well but I’ll sit this one out to begin with.
Tips
WON – Back M.Selby vs J.Higgins – Over 7.5 frames for a 4/10 stake at 1.91 with William Hill
Back it here:
Back S.Murphy (+1.5 frames) to beat R.O’Sullivan for a 4/10 stake at 2.10 with Betfair
Back him here:
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2019
