The second day of the Players Championship sees four more first round matches being played as we head towards completing the quarter final line up in the latest Duelbits Series event up in Wolverhampton.
We have a couple of matches in the afternoon session and a couple more in the evening as four more spots in the quarter finals will be earned. We have four top 16 players and two more recent tournament winners on show on what should be a decent day of action.
Afternoon Session
Mark Selby vs Shaun Murphy
The main table will be occupied by two class acts on Tuesday afternoon when the English Open champion Mark Selby takes on the man he beat in the world final two years ago in Shaun Murphy, who arrives in Wolverhampton fresh from making the final of the Welsh Open.
These two are certainly no strangers to facing each other. They have battled against each other on 30 previous occasions and while it is Selby who has won the last four matches, Murphy will know he should have won their last match when he missed match ball black off its spot in the English Open before going down in a deciding frame. I think he will get his revenge for that here. There is no doubt in my mind that in 2023 he has played the better snooker. He made the semi-final of the World Grand Prix where Judd Trump was too hot for him and then the final of the Welsh Open and that can be the difference this week. Selby won a couple of matches last week but felt like he was waiting to be put out of his misery and if he offers the opportunities to Murphy he’ll be on his way home quickly here.
Kyren Wilson vs Zhou Yuelong
The action over on table two will see the first full knockout event winner of the season in Kyren Wilson taking on the Northern Ireland Open finalist Zhou Yuelong for a place in the last eight of the Players Championship.
Wilson goes into this match as the favourite to come out on top but he lost in the first round of The Masters, The second round of the World Grand Prix and the first full round of the Welsh Open where he cut a very frustrated figure. He feels there for the taking for Yuelong but that run in Northern Ireland aside, he has offered up precious little this season and he showed in that final that the big spotlight isn’t always something he is comfortable under. I wouldn’t be surprised if Yuelong won this match but I don’t like backing him in these kind of events because all too often he flatters to deceive.
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Evening Session
Ali Carter vs Judd Trump
The action on the main table in the evening session sees two men who have collected silverware already in 2023 when the German Masters winner Ali Carter goes up against The Masters champion Judd Trump for a place in the quarter final.
The mere fact that these two have won titles this year should ensure their confidence is high and they treat us to something of a cracking contest here. In saying that, Trump didn’t really play well in winning The Masters, at least until the final, and although he was much better in making the final of the World Grand Prix, he didn’t look brilliant at the Welsh Open last week where he lost out to Daniel Wells in the second round and probably should have lost in the opening round to Louis Heathcote. Carter didn’t have his best stuff with him in Wales but that was probably understandable after the highs of Berlin. He was also playing for a sizeable sum of cash which might have weighed on his mind. There are no such issues with that here although he is still battling for a spot at the Tour Championship but with his top 16 place likely to be sewn up heading into the World Championship he can approach this with a bit of freedom. The win in Berlin was coming for Carter. He made the semi-final of the European Masters and the quarter final of the English Open earlier in the season so he has been going well for a while. We know he is very competitive and if Trump is a shade off his game like he was last week then Carter could take advantage at a decent price.
Robert Milkins vs Tom Ford
Over on table two in the evening session the recently crowned Welsh Open champion Robert Milkins will look to extend his winning run when he goes up against the German Masters finalist Tom Ford for a place in the last eight.
Milkins will come in here off the crest of a wave but you have to wonder how much winning the Welsh Open has taken out of him. It was visibly obvious how much winning that tournament and the many bonuses which came with it meant to him and to go from those highs to get back up again and go ahead in these surroundings. Even if he can do that, Milkins isn’t guaranteed to have it all his own way against a Ford who this season had made the semi-finals of the UK Championship before he reached the final of the German Masters. .Ford is playing some good snooker so if Milkins doesn’t suffer a comedown this could be a cracker. My gut feeling is that Ford will edge this but the head to head is firmly with Milkins so I’m happy to leave this one alone.
Tips
Back S.Murphy to beat M.Selby for a 3/10 stake at 2.20 with Betfred
Back A.Carter to beat J.Trump for a 3/10 stake at 2.88 with Betfred
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