The opening day of the World Championship is always one of the highlights of the year for any snooker fan and it comes along on Saturday when the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield opens its doors to the stars of the game for the first time in 2023.
Five matches will get underway on what really does look like a tasty day of action with the highlight being the beginning of the title defence of Ronnie O’Sullivan, who as tradition dictates will open the show and conclude his match in the evening.
Ronnie O’Sullivan vs Pang Junxu (Saturday 10am & 7pm)
The opening match of the tournament on Table One will see Ronnie O’Sullivan beginning his quest for an eighth world title when he goes up against the debutant Pang Junxu, who will be competing in the biggest match of his life.
That doesn’t mean that Pang is just turning up to make up the numbers. He recently made it to the final of the WST Classic where he went down to Mark Selby. That came off the back of a spin to the last four of the Welsh Open so over the last couple of months Pang has certainly come to the boil and if O’Sullivan isn’t at the races he’ll soon find out he is in a game here if the Chinese youngster settles in on debut. You would imagine experience is going to be a major factor in this match. O’Sullivan has bags of it and Pang doesn’t. Despite that, while I see Ronnie winning the match I’m not convinced he runs away with it but the debut factor sways me from siding with the underdog even though defending champions don’t have a great record in this particular slot.
Stuart Bingham vs Dave Gilbert (Saturday 10am & Sunday 10am)
The first match of the competition over on Table Two sees two evenly matched and closely ranked players going at it when the former champion Stuart Bingham takes on a Dave Gilbert who has also been to the one-table setup here in the past.
Gilbert has already seen off one Crucible specialist to make it through to the main draw having taken care of Matthew Stevens in the final qualifying round. He was made to work hard in that match so he should be battle hardened. This is a big clash for Bingham. He is defending semi-final money from a couple of years ago and if he loses early in this tournament then he will be out of the top 16 and in need of a major campaign next term to get his lofty status in the game back. This one could be a cracker if they both show up but I’m happy to watch the opening session and see how they go before getting too involved in this one.
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Luca Brecel vs Ricky Walden (Saturday 2.30pm & Sunday 7pm)
The action continues on Table One in the afternoon session on Saturday when Luca Brecel steps out onto the Crucible floor looking to do something he hasn’t done before – win a match inside this venue. Ricky Walden is the man who will be looking to keep him winless.
Brecel lost a couple of deciders to Marco Fu and Gary Wilson in 2017 and 2019 but in the other three matches he has played here he has been well beaten. One of those occasions was seven years ago when it was Ricky Walden who scuppered the hopes of the Belgian, beating him 10-6 when Walden was a qualifier much like in this match Walden isn’t just a qualifier. He hasn’t had a particularly good campaign this term but he was very good last season and did everything but win, however something clicked in qualifying and we know he is content with his game because he came through a cracking match with Thepchaiya Un-Nooh which he wouldn’t have won if he wasn’t feeling good about things. Brecel was the finalist in the English Open this season but has only won two matches in the same event once since then so he isn’t bringing much form into the tournament with him. I’ve no idea why Brecel doesn’t perform at this venue but clearly something disagrees with him because five appearances is enough to be settled in the surroundings. I expect Walden to take advantage and repeat the 2016 win over the ‘Belgian Bullet’.
Neil Robertson vs Wu Yize (Saturday 2.30pm & Sunday 2.30pm)
The second experience vs Chinese debutant clash on the opening day comes along on Table Two and begins on Saturday afternoon when Neil Robertson begins another tilt at an elusive second world title against the newcomer Wu Yize.
Yize did well to win the three qualifying matches he had to come through to make it into this tournament but you would have to say he might well meet his match here. Robertson has one of the most mysterious records in all of sport here because he is so so so much better than his World Championship CV but for whatever reason it doesn’t happen for him. He comes in under the radar a little more this year but in terms of his title chances the whispers that he is going to Joe Perry for advice tells me he is searching for something in his game. I still expect the Australian to win this and win it with a fair bit in hand because Wu Yize is on debut and he isn’t really seasoned at the top level. He made the quarter finals of the European Masters at the beginning of the season but hasn’t won two main draw matches in an event since and when he has come up against the better players over the season he has fallen very short. Anthony McGill has a couple of 4-1 wins over him while Mark Selby and Judd Trump have beaten him by the same score. The sheer relentlessness of the Robertson scoring can be overwhelming for seasoned campaigners let alone rookies and over two sessions I expect that to see the ‘Thunder from Down Under’ home. I don’t see Wu Yize getting more than six frames here.
Ali Carter vs Jak Jones (Saturday 7pm & Sunday 7pm)
While Ronnie O’Sullivan concludes his first round match in the evening session, over on Table Two the German Masters champion Ali Carter will get his campaign underway when he meets the third debutant on show on Saturday in Jak Jones.
Jones had a huge scalp in qualifying when he took care of Barry Hawkins and he might well feel on top of the world heading to Sheffield. He can be quite an awkward campaigner when he is at his best because he is the snookering equivalent of Patrick Cantlay, albeit maybe not as consistent as the golfer. That might get up the Carter sleeve the longer this one goes on and the 2-0 head to head lead that the Welsh player has on Carter will only serve to make him feel better about his chances but Carter has looked right on it since he won that German Masters, and even before then to be fair. He is playing some of the best snooker he has ever played and if he can score well in this match and not miss anything too dramatic I expect him to come through. I’m on Carter outright so I’m going to watch this opening session and then assess this one from there just in case the slow pace does drag Ali down.
Tips
Back R.Walden to beat L.Brecel for a 3/10 stake at 2.30 with William Hill
Back N.Robertson (-3.5 frames) to beat W.Yize for a 4/10 stake at 1.73 with Coral
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