The World Open semi-finals will be played on Saturday across the two sessions of play and at the end of the day we will know the two men who are going to battle it out for the title on Sunday.
With the tournament down to one table we move from the best of nine frames to the best of 11 which always makes for much better snooker and I’m sure the four men involved will serve up a bit of a treat.
Friday Recap
One of the more surprising scorelines of the season took place on Friday to deny us our bet when Ali Carter thumped John Higgins 5-0. When the season is concluded and we look back on it there won’t be many more surprisingly emphatic results than that one.
Elsewhere Thepchaiya Un-Nooh confirmed why I was reluctant to take him on when he saw off Anthony McGill while in the afternoon session Joe Perry and Neil Robertson powered past Shaun Murphy and Dave Gilbert respectively.
Ali Carter vs Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
Given the other semi-final I guess you could call this one the meeting of the surprise packages although both men have shown a number of times in the past that they are talented enough to compete for titles. In fairness to the Thai this is the first time that he has shown his worth with 15 reds on the table at this stage of a tournament but his talent has never been in doubt.
Ali Carter will be absolutely buzzing going into this semi-final and he is two wins away from an emotional return to the top 16 which would be remarkable given all that he has been through. Carter’s 5-0 win over John Higgins on Friday should have tuned him up nicely for this test.
If Thepchaiya Un-Nooh doesn’t suffer any nerves and can get into this match early he is going to take a lot of beating. Already this week he has seen off Mark Selby and Anthony McGill and they are excellent wins and with his scoring power he could do some real damage here if he is given the chances to.
This should be a solid semi-final and I’ve a feeling Un-Nooh will come through it but I’ve taken Carter on once and got it all wrong so I’m not about to do it again although there is a sort of two way bet on offer here. If Un-Nooh wins this match there is no way he’ll do it without nailing at least three 50+ breaks but even in defeat there is a chance he can win a few frames and knock in some breaks along the way. With that in mind the over 2.5 50+ breaks for the Thai looks a shade too big here.
Joe Perry vs Neil Robertson
The second semi-final is a repeat of the Wuxi Classic final of a couple of years ago as friends and practice partners Joe Perry and Neil Robertson meet out in China once again. Both men have looked good going into this semi-final so we should be in for a good one.
I’ve had a feeling for a while this week that Robertson’s name is on this trophy and I fancy him to come through but the odds are about right and I can’t decide whether he is a good thing to cover a 2.5 handicap or not. A 1.5 cap and I’d be all over him but you have to respect Perry’s all round game and the fact he has just beaten Shaun Murphy in style and that is enough to persuade me to leave this match alone.
Tips
Back T.Un-Nooh Over 2.5 50+ breaks for a 4/10 stake at 2.10 with Paddy Power
Back it here:
