The main contenders for this years Worlds ?

Skullman wrote:

Smart wrote:DING or JOGIA......................the title is Asia's this year

Lucky Vatnani?

I think ZHANGER has more chance tbh.

SnookerFan wrote:

Sonny wrote:I've heard a couple of people mention Ding hasn't got the mental strength to win the Worlds. It's utter nonsense.

Come on Ding!

They spelt World Championship wrong the trophy.

has to be worst trophy ever that. A slate off a roof

Main contender for me has to be Ali Carter, he will make some amazing revival, play the best Snooker of his life and win. It will p*** Witz off, he will cry, go into a rage and threaten not to watch Snooker again and will threaten to quit this forum.

Being realistic though, I will go with Selby, Higgins, Robertson, Trump, Murphy and Dott. I can actually see Dott reaching the Semis or Final again this year, he has the grit and the prowess to do well again at the World Championships. He has upped and fastened his game up considerably over the past couple of years.

Witz78 wrote:my outside tip this year is actually Ebdon

his current situation and results have been dire, but i could see The Force relishing the chance of being written off as a no-hoper and producing some mind numbing stuff to grind even the likes of perennial bore Robbo others down,

lets hope you put a packet on him and cant afford to pay for internet

nice_shoes_ken wrote:Main contender for me has to be Ali Carter, he will make some amazing revival, play the best Snooker of his life and win. It will p*** Witz off, he will cry, go into a rage and threaten not to watch Snooker again and will threaten to quit this forum.

Being realistic though, I will go with Selby, Higgins, Robertson, Trump, Murphy and Dott. I can actually see Dott reaching the Semis or Final again this year, he has the grit and the prowess to do well again at the World Championships. He has upped and fastened his game up considerably over the past couple of years.

Let's hope so

You cant just dismiss Ronnies chances......hes very capable still.

Favourites updated after the World Open:

1. Trump - has the most potential of all the players right now and is very consistent
2. Robbo - if he puts in 100% he is super hard to stop
3. Ronnie - it gets tougher every year but he has his confidence back now and he will put 100% in this year
4. Ding - very inconsistent but a big tournament player and a proven winner with enormous potential
5. Selby - Mr Consistent but he just doesn't win as much titles as he should and disappointed in the majors for 2 years now
6. Allen - showed what he can beat the very best consistently but he isn't a proven multiple winner yet and that's what you need to win the Worlds
7. Higgins - very poor season so far and his past performances as defending champion
8. Murphy - can't finish the job in the business end of a tournament
9. Maguire - too many battle scars and doubts but he showed in Germany that he can still do it

Off topic

1 thiing i will miss on here this year is the great previews and pre match analysis from tubbs and bourne

I've got a feeling Murphy's going to come through and at least make the final. Apart from Judd, the top half are all out of form and in recent years first time finalists have performed poorly the next year. Selby in '08, Carter in '09, Robertson '11.

The bottom half is far more intriguing, I'd rule out O'Sullivan simply cos he'll coast round 1 but then it'll get more and more difficult each round. Robertson similarly, Gould will be a gimme and therefore not ideal preparation for O'Sullivan and then Selby, Allen or Ding...and then the final to win.

There's no point predicting Selby's route cos he'll be sublime one match and then tank the next.

I just hope there are no shockers ala Higgins in '10 that provide an easy passage for one of the top guys.

I was having a look at the draw again this morning.
As it sits, from the top half I'll be backing Judd Trump & from the bottom half I'll be backing Neil Robertson.
As always, it will be a survival of the fittest.

Trump is the only player you could make strong favourite for his quarter of the draw

I was looking at that but there is a potential 1/4 final with Shaun Murphy, which won't be easy, providing of course Shaun Murphy gets past Stephen Lee who is cueing beautifully again.

I'll be looking at Stephen Maguire coming through from the top 1/4 & with a potential 1/4 final from the bottom quarter being Mark Allen /Ding Junhui v Mark Selby, which I'll be licking my lips at.

I like to do my in depth analysis, will only do the players who will stand a chance.

Top Half
Higgins - The reigning champion in previous tournaments, always go out in the first or second round, can't see it with Higgins though, quarters for him in my view, then he might have problems.

Dott - Not had his best season, but can always perform at the Crucible. Has made great strides in his game, now more of an attacking player I can see him doing well again this year, tough draw mind with two Scots in his half.

Maguire - Consistent performer, and has done very well in two of the last three major tournaments, signs of him coming back to his best, could well make the Semis in my opinion.

Murphy - Should fly through the first week, but then the sight of Trump might well cause him problems. Quarters or Semis definitely for Murphy this year, place in the final is very realistic aswell, but Trump may well lay in his path.

Trump - Absolute phenom of the Snooker table, but like Higgins as he got to the final last year, finalists usually go out in first or second round. However I believe Trump is too good, should get through first round, then he may meet Carter but doubtful with his form, then Murphy may await.

Players I can see in the final - Dott, Maguire, Murphy, Trump.

Bottom Half
Williams - Has done ever so well to get back amongst the top four in the World Rankings; however is he good enough to make it through to the latter stages. I don't think so, Ronnie is gradually getting better, while Robertson and Gould are in his half, then if he is to make it through to the semis, Ding, Allen or Selby may await. Draw has been tough on Williams, quarters at best this year.

O'Sullivan - God knows which Ronnie will turn up, signs of him gradually building up his game again, but will the World Championships come to soon for him to make a real statement, that his form is back. A tasty second round affair with Williams is on the cards of course, then Robertson may await. Depends which Ronnie will turn up, he will either get stunned in the first round by a very good qualifier, or he will make the quarters at least.

Robertson - Has done well in the PTC's and the Masters Champion of course, but since then he has had some tough and poor losses. I don't believe he will make the final, but I can see him making the Semi Finals. A potential second round match between Martin Gould may be tough though, as Gould just keeps on improving. Robertson for the Semis though, final may be pushing it.

Ding - His crucible record is quite poor, until last year. Don't think he is quite settled for a major run at the Crucible again this year, despite clinching the Welsh Open. He has the talent but his half is ever so tough, second round encounter possibly with Mark Allen will be exciting, if he gets through that Selby may await, and with Selby's game he might wear Ding down. Ding may be lucky to make it past the first week.

Allen - If he causes controversy again, he will get to the final haha. Being realistic though, he is on form, he will be a danger, but has he got the game to last until the semis/final. I can see Allen making the quarters, but from there we will see what he is really made of. He has the game to beat Selby and maybe Robertson if he gets to the Semis, but I think he may get edged out in one of those rounds.

Selby - World Number 1, and in his vain of form he deserves a good run at this World Championship. His tactical side of his game will be too good for players in the opening week. Will get through round 1, unless he meets someone like Marco Fu, who is capable of grinding out a surprise result. Machew may await in round 2, but wouldn't be surprised if he bowed out. Then it maybe Allen or Ding, if either of them can keep their cool and cue well, they can beat Selby. Overall though Selby has the best chance of making the final in the bottom half, but I also wouldn't be surprised to see him go out in the quarter finals.

Players I can see in the final - Robertson, Ding, Allen, Selby.

SnookerFan wrote:After his recent success at the World Open, how do people see Mark Allen doing at The Crucible?

He is, as they say, "A Contender".

SnookerFan wrote:Ronnie, QF at best.

If he gets through his first round, he'll probably have to play Williams. Ronnie will spank him.

Assuming the quarter-final is Neil Robertson vs Ronnie O'Sullivan, Ronnie loses.

Unless Robbo does a fist pump after going 3-0 up and then subsequently gets hammered.

Strange to say for a world champion, but he doesn't have any really impressive wins at the crucible.

Ok let's do it...

Quarter 1
Higgins, Bingham, Dott, Maguire
The one player I defo can't see reaching the semis is Bingham. He hasn't done much since winning in Australia and maybe it isn't that surprising. Everything else set aside he's become a father for the first just after the event and how many times have we seen it, a player having a slump after some "life changing" event?
John Higgins hasn't played well this season and I'm not surprised. A lot were seeing him as the "man to beat", but after the tremendous efforts he put in last season to try and redeem himself, and having won about everything in the process, I was always expecting an anti-climax as it is a normal psychological reaction. That said he played a lot better in Haikou so he certainly can't be ruled out. His runs in Sheffield though have been a bit all or nothing recently: over the last 8 years he's won it 3 times, but he's also failed to reach the QF 5 times and his recent defenses have not been convincing.
So for me it's between Dott and Maguire. Maguire is in form but Dott has a very, very good record over longer formats and seems to often do well in Sheffield. So should they meet in round 2, this is hard to call. But whoever comes through, on current form, I'd expect him to be the one reaching the semis.

Quarter 2
Murphy, Lee, Carter, Trump.
Again there is one player I defo don't see in the SF and that's Carter. His health is really bad recently (more than a year now), it has affected his practice big time and he's considering retirement... enough said.
Other than that for me, Trump is the clear favourite to reach the SF from this quarter. Murphy is playing well but hasn't won anything (except Brazil ...) and that's because - as sonny has explained a few times already - he has a few flaws in his game and he tends to push the boat when put under pressure. That's dooming when facing the very top guys. Lee is playing well also and his general health/form seems to be a lot better than it has been over the last years, but I don't believe he has the stamina over three sessions (twice).

Quarter 3
Williams, Ronnie, Gould, Robertson
Gould has failed to beat the top 8 players all season and I can't see this change here. Williams has not been the same since his defeat to Selby in Shanghai and should he face Ronnie in R2, here is a man he has not beaten in a ranking event for 10 years.
For those who hope to see Ronnie fail in round 1, well it's not impossible of course but in 19 Crucible appearances, it's happen only 3 times, one of them being his first ever WC when he was only 17. So let's say it's unlikely.
Therefore I expect a Robertson v Ronnie clash in the QF and it's a hard one to call. For those who think long formats don't suit Ronnie, think again. He's reached at least the QF in Sheffield 13 times, and the SF 8 times in 19 appearances and he has a similar record in the UK, the other long format tournament. Even last year, after a disaster of a season and with a very rusty game he reached the quarters and ran Higgins close, and he's done pretty well in the two last tournaments he's entered... Robertson on the other hand looked to be the man in form up to the Masters that he won. Since he's not performed quite at the same level but I wouldn't read too much in it. His three last appearances in Sheffield ended with a SF, a Win and a R1 defeat... but he was not the luckiest of boys to draw Trump ;). So very hard to call and very much an "on the moment" form factor IMO

Quarter 4
Ding, Allen, Stevens, Selby
Again there is one man who I can't see reaching the quarters and this is Stevens. He too often loses even from leading positions in important matches and against Allen (should they both win their R1) ... I just can't see him win.
I honestly can't see Ding there neither. Yes, he has won the Welsh, but other than that he's got a very, very poor season, so much so that he might have to fight to stay in the top 16 next season. Despite his Welsh trophy he's down to 18th in the one year list. Worse, when pressure was on, in China lately, when defending his Masters title, when playing other chinese players, he's usually failed to deliver. And he will have huge pressure in Sheffield. So, no.
To me, it will be between Selby and Allen and for all of Allen great form, I would expect Selby to edge it. Yes, he lost to Allen in Haikou and Allen was nearly unplayable for the last 4 frames. But over a longer format and three sessions I would be surprised if he could sustain the same standard all the time. And if Selby can put him under pressure, which I expect, I think he could become a bit impatient and reckless. But for achieving that Selby has to be fresher than he was last year and that has been a question mark all season.

My views.

In seeding order

John Higgins: Brilliant player, but always does bad defending his title. I don't think he'll lose in the second round this time, as Bingham isn't in his class. At least Davis, while being a shadow of his former self, can pull out some good performances now and then, and had the tactical game to compete with Higgins. Plus the long format gives him a chance to pull off some of his comebacks. If he beats Dott/Maguire, watch out.

Mark Selby: My favourite player, and I'd love to say that he'll win this year. Being realistic though, he will easily get past his qualifier and Stevens. Ding/Allen will be tough. I personally hope its Ding, as I don't think Allen can pull of a repeat of what happened in Haikou. Then he has Ronnie, who he owns, or Robbo. Not easy, but when is winning the World Championship easy (2008 excluded)? Plus he has that habit or playing awesome early and then throwing in a stinker later, and against players of the calibre he's facing, you can't afford to have a bad session(s).

Mark Williams: Hasn't been anywhere near his best since losing the Shanghai final. Best performance being the quarter final in Berlin. Unless he finds his form again, or Ronnie plays unbelievably crap, MJW ain't getting past the second round.

Judd Trump: A lot of people's favourite, but personally I don't see it happening. Finalists rarely do well the next year, and Judd doesn't seem to riding that wave of confidence anymore. Before he acted like the other top players couldn't touch him, and for a while they couldn't. But since losing t Robbo, he hasn't got that aura anymore, and looks beatable. I think he might lose to Murphy this year.

Shaun Murphy: Has been a very consistent season for Shaun and he could top it by winning here again. He has been throwing in the occasional stinker now and then, like those semis against Maguire and Ding, but the beauty of the long matches is that you can make up for a bad session. Should beat Lee, and will be a tough, but manageable match against Judd (or Carter ). Can see him beating Dott or Maguire if they reach the semis. If it's Higgins no chance.

Neil Robertson: Another good player and I hope he reaches the semis at least. Of course if Selby's out then I want Robbo to win the whole thing! He hasn't been having that good a season after the Masters, but in 2009/10. he had a poor season, except for his Grand Prix win, and went to win the Worlds. He should get to the quarters easily, and then it's the old cliche of which Ronnie turns up. Ronnie seems to be focused, but it can change from day to day. He lsot to Ronnie in 2007, when he ahd won two rankers earlier in the season, but of course Robbo in 2012 is a btter player than Robbo in 2007 was. If he gets past Ronnie, it doesn't get easier with Ding/Allen/Selby in the semis. If he gets to the final, let's see if he can maintain that record of his .

Ding Junhui: Apart from the Welsh, he's been having a poor season and before last year, had an appaling record in Sheffield. Allen will be a much tougher match than Bingham was (no matter what Stuart thinks) and Mark will on a wave of confidence after Haikou, although if he does poorly in Beijing, he'll lose some momentum. If he gets past that, there's Selby to contend with. Ding has beaten Selby at this stage last year, but they are pretty evenly matched. and I think Selby will be keen on revenge . If he managed to reach the semis again, there's Robbo, who will tough to beat or Ronnie, who owns him.

Stephen Maguire: Has refound his old form. It won't be easy as he will have Dott, who always ups his game here, and then Higgins, who has found some form, and won't beaten as easily as he was in Berlin. Plus Maguire might remember 2007. If he gets past John, there will Murphy/Trump, both of whom Stephen can beat, but they are also capable of beating him. Expecting him to go fairly far but don't think he'll win, and he'll have hard matches from the last 16 onwards.

Graeme Dott: Another player who has had an awful season so far, with the only quarter being the Masters, and that was because he had Ali Carter. Of course, Graeme can always up his game here, and been to the final thrice. Plus in 2010, he out of the top16, but still managed to get to the final. Unpredictable. Could lose to Mags, could win the whole thing.

Mark Allen: Riding a wave of confidence after Haikou and has finally got that semi-final monkey off his back this season. He could suddenly play amazing for the rest of the season like Trump did last year. Of course he's in a tough quarter, with lots of tough opponents (and Matthew Stevens). If he gets through that, he has to play Ronnie/Robbo, two players who when they're playing well, can totally outclass him. Personally I think he might get past Ding, but not Selby.

Martin Gould: How he is in the top16? Out in the last 16, or maybe even last 32.

Stephen Lee: Had some good results, but I've made the mistake of overestimating his abilities this season once, and I won't do it again. Too inconsistent and I don't think he'll beat Murphy.

Ali Carter:
In all seriousness, a good player, who has been having an awful season, health troubles and isn't really in the right mindset. I hope if he does retire after Sheffield, that he goes out with a bang instead of a whimper, but he has very little chance of beating Trump, if he can even beat his first round opponent.

Ronnie O'Sullivan: Has been in good form since Germnay, but has had a bit of a break and might have lost some momentum. Can't see him losing to any qualifier, except Fu or possibly Walden in good form. Easy match against his bunny MJW in the last 16, and then it starts getting hard with Robbo. Should be a cracker and depends on which Ronnie turns up (and which Robbo too). Could face Ding/Allen/Selby. Will be hoping for his bunny Ding. Allen can beat him, but I don't see it happening (mainly because he'll probably lose to Selby). If he gets Selby, expect the usual. Ronnie gets pretty far ahead, but loses in the end, while Selby gets slated for being boring. If he gets to the final, well he hasn't lost a World final yet, but neither had Hendry until he faced a certain Irishman. But it's a big if in my opinion.

Matthew Stevens: Can't see him beating Selby.

Stuart Bingham: See Gould.

Bloody hell, this took longer than I thought it would

Monique wrote:Ok let's do it...

Quarter 1
Higgins, Bingham, Dott, Maguire
The one player I defo can't see reaching the semis is Bingham. He hasn't done much since winning in Australia and maybe it isn't that surprising. Everything else set aside he's become a father for the first just after the event and how many times have we seen it, a player having a slump after some "life changing" event?
John Higgins hasn't played well this season and I'm not surprised. A lot were seeing him as the "man to beat", but after the tremendous efforts he put in last season to try and redeem himself, and having won about everything in the process, I was always expecting an anti-climax as it is a normal psychological reaction. That said he played a lot better in Haikou so he certainly can't be ruled out. His runs in Sheffield though have been a bit all or nothing recently: over the last 8 years he's won it 3 times, but he's also failed to reach the QF 5 times and his recent defenses have not been convincing.
So for me it's between Dott and Maguire. Maguire is in form but Dott has a very, very good record over longer formats and seems to often do well in Sheffield. So should they meet in round 2, this is hard to call. But whoever comes through, on current form, I'd expect him to be the one reaching the semis.

Quarter 2
Murphy, Lee, Carter, Trump.
Again there is one player I defo don't see in the SF and that's Carter. His health is really bad recently (more than a year now), it has affected his practice big time and he's considering retirement... enough said.
Other than that for me, Trump is the clear favourite to reach the SF from this quarter. Murphy is playing well but hasn't won anything (except Brazil ...) and that's because - as sonny has explained a few times already - he has a few flaws in his game and he tends to push the boat when put under pressure. That's dooming when facing the very top guys. Lee is playing well also and his general health/form seems to be a lot better than it has been over the last years, but I don't believe he has the stamina over three sessions (twice).

Quarter 3
Williams, Ronnie, Gould, Robertson
Gould has failed to beat the top 8 players all season and I can't see this change here. Williams has not been the same since his defeat to Selby in Shanghai and should he face Ronnie in R2, here is a man he has not beaten in a ranking event for 10 years.
For those who hope to see Ronnie fail in round 1, well it's not impossible of course but in 19 Crucible appearances, it's happen only 3 times, one of them being his first ever WC when he was only 17. So let's say it's unlikely.
Therefore I expect a Robertson v Ronnie clash in the QF and it's a hard one to call. For those who think long formats don't suit Ronnie, think again. He's reached at least the QF in Sheffield 13 times, and the SF 8 times in 19 appearances and he has a similar record in the UK, the other long format tournament. Even last year, after a disaster of a season and with a very rusty game he reached the quarters and ran Higgins close, and he's done pretty well in the two last tournaments he's entered... Robertson on the other hand looked to be the man in form up to the Masters that he won. Since he's not performed quite at the same level but I wouldn't read too much in it. His three last appearances in Sheffield ended with a SF, a Win and a R1 defeat... but he was not the luckiest of boys to draw Trump ;). So very hard to call and very much an "on the moment" form factor IMO

Quarter 4
Ding, Allen, Stevens, Selby
Again there is one man who I can't see reaching the quarters and this is Stevens. He too often loses even from leading positions in important matches and against Allen (should they both win their R1) ... I just can't see him win.
I honestly can't see Ding there neither. Yes, he has won the Welsh, but other than that he's got a very, very poor season, so much so that he might have to fight to stay in the top 16 next season. Despite his Welsh trophy he's down to 18th in the one year list. Worse, when pressure was on, in China lately, when defending his Masters title, when playing other chinese players, he's usually failed to deliver. And he will have huge pressure in Sheffield. So, no.
To me, it will be between Selby and Allen and for all of Allen great form, I would expect Selby to edge it. Yes, he lost to Allen in Haikou and Allen was nearly unplayable for the last 4 frames. But over a longer format and three sessions I would be surprised if he could sustain the same standard all the time. And if Selby can put him under pressure, which I expect, I think he could become a bit impatient and reckless. But for achieving that Selby has to be fresher than he was last year and that has been a question mark all season.

I would go along with most of that however Ding is a worry for me and should he and Allen win their first round matches, Ding would still have to start favourite.

Ding still has a poor record apart from last year, and is the type of player who improves as he goes along. Last year he had a fairly easy opponent in Bingham, while this time he has Allen. Plus Ding hasn't been in that good form recently, excluding Wales. Which is fine for me, as I would be more worried if Selby faced Ding in the quarters than if he faced Allen (no offence).

GJ wrote:Off topic

1 thiing i will miss on here this year is the great previews and pre match analysis from tubbs and bourne

buck bourne total wally.