The World Open final takes place out in Yushan on Saturday when Joe O’Connor will face off against John Higgins in an intriguing conclusion to the Chinese event where the trophy and first prize of £175,000 is on the line.
These two men have comfortably been the best players on show this week and it is fitting that they will battle it out in what looks to be an interesting final and one which promises to be close throughout with first to 10 getting their hands on the trophy.
Joe O’Connor
I think it is fair to say that Joe O’Connor has been the pick of the players on show this week and it will be interesting to see if he can maintain his form one more time to land the first ranking event title of his career. He has been in a final before though so this won’t be completely alien territory to him but it could be a day which changes the shape of his career and he’ll most probably be in the last two Players Series events, will qualify for the Champion of Champions and will see him move to the fringes of the top 20 in the world with a win.
O’Connor has seen off two form players in the form of Judd Trump and Shaun Murphy this week, the latter was particularly impressive because he was on fire going into that match. He then cruised past Ali Carter in the semi-final where he held himself together with the sort of poise that would suggest he won’t wilt in this final. If he can play like he did against Trump and especially against Murphy then he is entitled to be very tough to beat.
John Higgins
John Higgins has finally made it back into another final and ironically having coughed up a few leads in big matches in the last couple of seasons, he reached this title match by coming from 4-2 down in the last 16 and 5-3 down in the semi-final to win both in a deciding frame. That confirms that he still has all of his battling qualities but the question is whether he can find the same level to get over the line should he shoot off into a lead in this final.
One issue for Higgins could be that the draw has been kind to him. He hasn’t faced anyone inside the top 25 in the world this week and although technically he doesn’t here, O’Connor is playing snooker that belongs a lot higher than his current ranking. The other issue for Higgins is this has been a long week with no real time off and it might be that at his age his energy tank isn’t quite as full as he would like it to be at this stage of a tournament.
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Head-to-head
These two men have met on five previous occasions with John Higgins leading the way 3-2. His advantage is just as narrow on the frame score too where he is 19-17 in front which suggests that when these two meet there isn’t much in it. O’Connor won their first two meetings but Higgins has won the three since then but this will be their first meeting in a final. It is also their first battle in a best of 19 and any multi-session match. They meet in China for the first time here as well so although their record is tight, quite how much we can lean on history in this matchup remains to be seen.
Betting
I understand why John Higgins is the favourite for this match but I’m not sure I can back him at the prices. I wouldn’t say he has been the better player of the two and while he is much more established at this stage of a tournament, he hasn’t won a ranking event for four years so even how much significance that has is open to debate. If Joe O’Connor hadn’t been to a final before then maybe I could have made a better case for Higgins but I actually like the Englishman here.
O’Connor has been the better player this week and he has beaten the better players to make it through to this final. Wins over Judd Trump and Shaun Murphy should ensure that the Leicester man has nothing to fear in this final and as the younger man if this does get tight you would think he would have the more about him. Higgins has coughed up plenty of leads in the past so even if he goes in front you probably wouldn’t trust him completely to get the job done. I think there is more than enough to like about O’Connor at a solid odds against price.
Tips
Back J.O’Connor to beat J.Higgins for a 3/10 stake at 2.40 with Betfred
