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A look to THIS season

Postby Tubberlad

The PTC is off and running, and has been for some time, but for many, things really get rolling with September's Shanghai Masters. For the first time since 2006, neither John Higgins or Ronnie O'Sullivan will be getting things under way as champion of the World, in fact, Higgins may not feature at all. Time will tell. Unfortunately, I will not be able to follow the action as closely as in recent years, but no harm previewing things.

John Higgins: For legal reasons, I can't express how I feel about this sorry affair. Let's just say my respect for the man is not as substantial as what it used to be, that's just my opinion and it'll take a lot for that to change. However, in spite of all that, it won't change what I think of him as a player: John Higgins is a man I am definitely thankful to have seen play the great game, he's a fine tactician and is one of the all time greats. If he does play a part this season, nobody will like taking him on, but I can't see him being the force he once was. Surely he has taken too major a shaking to be a realistic major winner in the future.

Neil Robertson: finished last season as a deserving World Champion, a title he always looked destined to win, but for all my respect in Robertson, I can't see him repeating the trick this time round. Don't get me wrong, I expect Robertson to win it again at some stage, he's a great player and has the potential to become one of the best we've seen (top ten anyway). Over the next ten years, I expect him to be one of three men taking the bulk of the titles, and I can see him winning tournaments again this time out, no problem. Thing is, retaining the World Championship is something that takes sensational play. O'Sullivan, Williams or Higgins never did it. Hendry was the last man to do it, all of fourteen years ago. Do I rate Robertson in the same bracket as the O'Sullivan, Williams or Higgins? Definitely not yet, and indeed I'd be surprised if I ever did, but Robertson deserves a lot of respect. He's a raking long potter, one of the best the game has had, and has got an awful lot of bottle. Something so many lack these days. Winning five ranking finals in five is a genuinely great achievement, and no coincidence. Robertson is a winner, and don't expect that to change too soon.

Ronnie O'Sullivan: I don't think I need to say anything about him from a playing perspective. We all know the score. One thing I will stick by though: he's the last man anyone wants to face, but I saw a dip last year. Oh yes, from time to time he was the jaw dropping Ronnie O'Sullivan of old, just not as frequently as before. He appeared to be tetchy at times, on edge, and that's not really a criticism of the man, he has a lot of demons to deal with. Mark Selby being one of them at the moment, from a playing point of view anyway. I made the bold prediction last year that 2010 was O'Sullivan last real crack at the World Title, but looking back it was a bit short sighted. He's still possibly the best, or very close to it. But I have a sad feeling that maybe three will be his lot. And that he has underachieved greatly.

Ali Carter: I don't rate him all that highly. If I saw Carter with a clear frame winning opportunity in a decider, I wouldn't fancy him to do the business. Don't get me wrong, he's a very good player, I just feel he has punched above his weight to get this high on the ladder. I can see him winning one of mainstream rankers, not with any great confidence mind, but a World Championship is as far away as ever.

Ding Junhui: He still has problems at the Crucible, and having a betting slip with his name printed on it is never going to a comfortable experience. But for the large part, last season was very encouraging. I rate Ding incredibly highly. I watched him brush all opposition aside in Belfast four years ago, including Ronnie O'Sullivan, and I was devestated to see what happened him against the same man in 2007. For the last few years, I've been worried about the guy, he never looked like he was enjoying himself, but his time in snooker's purguratory has been served. He's a great in the making if he can prove his mettle, and winning the UK last term was not only deserved, but a relief. Ding is good enough to be World Champion, and could win a couple of titles of note this time round.

Stephen Maguire: A walking disappointment. I expected great things from this boy, I bought into the hype 6 years ago, and was genuinely encouraged around the 2007/2008 mark. He has not delivered, and I don't think anything illustrated this as well as his hammering to Graeme Dott at the Crucible. He will not deliver, tough he's good enough to.

Shaun Murphy: He's confident. A plus. A negative. I wouldn't mind backing Murphy to come through a decider, but I'd be just as confident in seeing him play a stupid shot that's not going to work out. His shot selection is baffling to me at times. Murphy is good enough to win the World title again, but I woudldn't be as confident as I was in saying that two or three years ago. He has gone backwards in my opinion.

Mark Williams: He's one of the best players I've ever seen, sensational potter with a very creative safety game. It was great to see him win a ranker last term, but it's a matter of pushing on this time. He did the same four years ago, and failed to make the most of the momentum. I don't expect the same to happen this time. Williams played very well last year, winning in China and doing very little wrong in losing out ot Ronnie at the Crucible. Not to mention, he should have made the Masters final. He's going to be a man to watch this year, definite.

Mark Selby: A serious, serious player. At the moment, his main problem seems to be in motivating himself to take out, no disrespect intended, lesser players. Not winning in Sheffield after taking out the star man so impressively could only have been a disappointment and a half for the Leicesterman, but he must move on. He is more than good enough to win the Joe Davis trophy, and I'd be surprised if he didn't do it at least twice. He has the bottle, he has the safety game, he has everything, and along with Ding and Robertson I expect him to be at the forefront of this decade's challengers. Crucible Champion 2011? Early day, but don't write it off.

Mark Allen: Really like this guy. He's got a lot of attitude around the table, like another Northern Irishman I can think of, and very little fear. I would not be surprised to see him win a World Championship somewhere down the line, confidence doesn't seem a problem, and I would be surprised if his ranking title virginity will last the course of the upcoming season. Keep an eye out.

Stephen Hendry: Great player. Just not anymore. I can see him slipping off the elite 16 this term.

Ryan Day: He's a very sad player to watch right now. I don't doubt that people are being overly harsh on him, he's not a bad player and never has been. I watched him throughout the Grand Prix in 2008, a turning point in his career. He was by far the best player, but a poor first session in the final against Higgins was his undoing, in spite of a really brave comeback. Since then, we haven't seen anything like that from Day. His loss to Mark Davis was a depressing nadir in his career to date, and I'm struggling to find the silver lining right now.

Graeme Dott: The disrespect this man has been shown never ceases to amaze me. I'm not surprised he got as down as he did, personal problems aside he has never been given his dues. World Championship 2010 was a showcase of all that is good about Graeme Dott. He genuinely played out of his skin, and the fact that he didn't win the title is of little importance. It was a giant middle finger waving in the direction of all his doubters. It's great to have Dott back amongst the top sixteen, and I hope he can kick on from last season. He's an excellent player.

Marco Fu: Last season was a disaster. This time round will be a lot better, we can safely say. Two PTC semi-finals have already insured that. Fu is a good player, not pretty to watch mind, but always seems to be a little bit off the main men. Don't expect fireworks.

Mark King: Without wishing to sound disrespectful, I've always seen him as the odd one out in the top 16.

Liang Wenbo: Very nice player to watch, has a bit about him, albeit not between the ears just yet. His shocking shot selection and overly attacking game are holding him back, and until he smartens up a bit that isn't going to change. However: I think he's got the right attitude personality wise, he doesn't let things bother him, and when he's in full flow he can be a joy to watch. A ranking title, even if only a PTC, would not surprise me.

Jamie Cope: Cope has everything you need to be a top professional, with one glaring ommision: bottle. His performance against Ali Carter in Sheffield was so far below what he's capable of that it left me gobsmacked. Cope is technically brilliant, and perhaps the addition of rolling rankings, and dare I say it, matters playing into his hands, will see an improvement this term. Indeed I expect one. He owes it to himself, because he's more than good enough.

Re: A look to next season

Postby Wildey

This Season has started well for some in the PTC but not for others Shaun Murphy for instance has had a disastrous start to the campaign and he is desperate for a good shanghai masters.

Neil Robertson needs to stamp his authority as World Champion as soon as otherwise the pressure will grow on him tournament by tournament.

Ronnie is someone that can flick a switch from hopeless to superb at will so he will be a danger

this season will be kill or cure for Hendry no longer can he turn up to Sheffield and win a couple of rounds he needs to be consistent elsewhere but what ive learned with him is never write him off.

and Ding his absence from any PTC is a mystery ok fair enough he wants to be with family but hes almost halved his season by not at least entering 1 event so hes eligible for the finals.

Re: A look to next season

Postby N_Castle07

wildJONESEYE wrote:This Season has started well for some in the PTC but not for others Shaun Murphy for instance has had a disastrous start to the campaign and he is desperate for a good shanghai masters.

Neil Robertson needs to stamp his authority as World Champion as soon as otherwise the pressure will grow on him tournament by tournament.

Ronnie is someone that can flick a switch from hopeless to superb at will so he will be a danger

this season will be kill or cure for Hendry no longer can he turn up to Sheffield and win a couple of rounds he needs to be consistent elsewhere but what ive learned with him is never write him off.

and Ding his absence from any PTC is a mystery ok fair enough he wants to be with family but hes almost halved his season by not at least entering 1 event so hes eligible for the finals.



If Hendry doesn’t qualify for the Worlds it would be a disaster for me :scared:

But as you say Wild he is not one to be wrote off.

Re: A look to next season

Postby N_Castle07

One thing is for sure I think the standards are going to shoot through the roof this season with all the extra added events. I expect the standards to get back to the late 90’s and early 00’s standard.

Re: A look to next season

Postby Wildey

N_Castle07 wrote:One thing is for sure I think the standards are going to shoot through the roof this season with all the extra added events. I expect the standards to get back to the late 90’s and early 00’s standard.

well it is Barry Pinches from the 90s winning things :redneck:

no seriously it can only get better if players going from one tournament to another at 6pm today Cope playing in sheffield at 12pm Friday hes playing in firth in Germany then a week later in shanghai.

Re: A look to next season

Postby The Cueist

<ok> It is all good for snooker and players forms in general,Regular week in week out with 4 majors thrown in. :D :D <cool>

Great for players and fans all round .And most importantly great news for sponsors. <ok>

More enthusiasm and positivity in the game should make it more attractive to watch. <cool>

Barry Hearn,Thank god somebody with nous is chairing the WSA ,The improvement is almost instant. <cool>

Re: A look to next season

Postby Tubberlad

Comment looks just about spot on Cueist... reminds me a bit of the golf, darts and tennis tours right now, and that can only be a good model to follow.

Just one question... which tournament do you consider the fourth major?

Re: A look to next season

Postby Wildey

China Open is potentially the 4th Major but it needs to step up to the Mark either with Best of 11s instead of Best of 9s or better still Best of 17s.

Re: A look to next season

Postby Smart

Bit harsh saying Cope lacks bottle...............................he has beaten top players (champions), he has the game. He has suffered from bad shot selection at times, that much I would say. He was also terribly unlucky when the white rolled off when running up to the yellow vs Higgins at the WC.

The rest of the appraisals are pretty good, hard to find much to argue about. <ok>

Re: A look to next season

Postby Wildey

yes i agree with smart ***shock horror*** <laugh>

but i think he has got plenty of bottle but like smart sais shot selection is boarding on me lol

Re: A look to next season

Postby The Cueist

StalinESQ wrote:Bit harsh saying Cope lacks bottle...............................he has beaten top players (champions), he has the game. He has suffered from bad shot selection at times, that much I would say. He was also terribly unlucky when the white rolled off when running up to the yellow vs Higgins at the WC.

The rest of the appraisals are pretty good, hard to find much to argue about. <ok>


<ok> Cope is class but has under acheived but still has a lot to offer for the future.We will no doubt see him reach his true potential and come to fruition soon enough. <ok>

Re: A look to next season

Postby paperbackwriter

This season is definitely full of great opportunities for the players and should be lots of fun from the spectator's point of view (tbh, even following PTC already is, on it's own frustrating rules).
What I'd like to see:
Mark Allen winning a ranker. I've said before I don't think it will happen this season, but still, it's not impossible with a lot of luck and it would be so good to see him getting there with his furious style.
Dott would be cool too. He definitely deserves more than two and one more may be waiting for him this season, if he's the same man he was at Crucible.
One of '75 guys winning WC. I'm probably talking about Ronnie or Williams here (whatever the outcome of Higgins case will be, of course hard to see him doing that... but if he proved he's innocent in a decisive way and somehow managed to do that, would be even better- unfortunately, it's only fantasising) and with the two of them it's one of the wishes which are relatively likely to come true.
Or if not, I'd like Ding to get there. Well, semis at last, but I don't think it has to be "one step at a time" thing, when the barrier is gone, it may be the best moment to go for it for the first time, before another one may build up.
As for Liang Wenbo, not sure what I want to see, probably just that things are going the right way.
Few (or any) flashes of form from Hendry, though it doesn't even sound like him so I don't know. At first I thought it would be nice to see him staying somewhere near the top, but then again, I'm not sure what's the point.
And more than solid season from Robbo. But I'm not worried too much about that, he's the type of player who should handle the pressure of being the World Champion well. Don't know if he'll add something really big to his CV and I certainly don't think he'll defend the title, but at the same time he should manage to confirm he's at the very top at the moment.

Re: A look to next season

Postby Steve K

Be intresting to see which players will be be in the top 16 this year. Matthew Stevens and Stephen Lee all have a good chance of rejoining again and possible new faces this year could be Mark Davis, Martin Gould (both massively rising in the rankings in the last few months) and Ricky Walden.

Would be nice to see Steve Davis or Ken Doherty back in but they would need to perform more consistantly in the PTCs

Re: A look to next season

Postby GJ

i think robbo WC will win AT LEAST 2 ranking tournaments this season

:afro: :D

Re: A look to THIS season

Postby randam05

What id like and expect from the top 16 this season...

1. John Higgins - Wait to see what happens, would be good just to see him competing well in some tournaments and picking up enough ranking points to keep him near the top and concentrate on having a good new fresh season next season.
2. Ronnie O'Sullivan - Would love to see 2 ranking titles from him this season although I dont see it happening, possible one major? I dont know you can never tell but would be great to see, and hopefully a consistent season.
3. Neil Robertson - Major force for the coming seasons, should win 1 or 2 ranking titles this season. Would like to see him do well in Masters and UK Championship or win one of these this season to prove the WC was not a one off although im sure we know it wasnt and it was a well deserved win.
4. Allister Carter - I expect a season like the last few. Couple of semis and quarters possible a major runner up and ranking title winner. Not too sure though.
5. Stephen Maguire - Youre right..'a walking dissapointment'. He is still staying in the top 8 and I dont see him dropping out of it for quite some time and I think this season or next he may pull his socks up and get a ranking title or two.
6. Mark Williams - Great to see him competing well again would love to see him push on from last season as you say. Hopefully quite a few ranking titles in store over the next couple of seasons.
7. Ding Junhui - Impressed with him last season, winning the UK. Interested to see how this season turns out as always with Ding. A player anyone will be scared to play and a force in all tournaments.
8. Mark Selby - Ranked 8? He is a much better player than this but with only 1 ranking title to his name he needs to start winning tournaments! Its annoying because I cant say why he hasnt won the worlds or UK yet and atleast some other ranking titles. I think next season is the season for him and we will see him winning titles and reaching finals more and more. Possibly will be the best player of next season and would love to see him win a major ranking title. World championship? a real contender for this.
9. Shaun Murphy - Same as Mark selby really. Also think he will have a very good season for the first time in a while. Should win a ranking event, would be dissapointed if he didnt. Look forward to seeing how it works out for him.
10. Mark Allen - Great player, full of confidence and should have a very good season. A ranking title in store for him soon I should think.
11. Ryan Day - Just like stephen maguire. He came on quick and reached many semis and finals but doesnt have the bottle to go all the way like you say. I dont know what else to say, needs to pick some consitency up this season.
12. Stephen Hendry - Great player obviously, should stay in the elite for this season and possible drop off next season but he still does well in some tournaments and will pick up ranking points well as the season progresses. But the best of him has gone..no more titles nor finals but still a good player.
13. Marco Fu - Will have a better season than last I should think, but surely not a title in him.
14. Graeme Dott - Agree with what you say, what talent to come back after his troubles and reach the final in stunning fashion against the top players. A consistent season lies ahead of him.
15. Jamie Cope - Fantastic but its fustrating to see him lose and lose and lose and lose. I always expect more from him. Hopefully he will pick something up in the next two seasons.
16. Mark King - Solid and should have the same sort of season as last. Maybe drop out the top 16 with these updated rankings. Agree with the statement.. 'the odd one out of the top 16'.

Re: A look to next season

Postby Rocket_ron

GJtheaussiestud wrote:i think robbo WC will win AT LEAST 2 ranking tournaments this season

:afro: :D

I think robbo is capable of breaking the crucible curse

Re: A look to next season

Postby Tubberlad

rocket_ron wrote:
GJtheaussiestud wrote:i think robbo WC will win AT LEAST 2 ranking tournaments this season

:afro: :D

I think robbo is capable of breaking the crucible curse


No, and I am pretty adamant of that.

Robertson is a very good player, as I've said I think he'll be one of the top three ranking event winners over the next ten years. But to defend a Crucible title takes something special. It hasn't been done in 14 years. In that time Doherty, Higgins (three times), Williams (twice), O'Sullivan (three times), Ebdon, Murphy & Dott have all failed to do it. Nobody has ever succeeded in defending it after a first time win: Hendry, Davis, O'Sullivan, Higgins, Williams, Reardon, Alex Higgins, Spencer, nobody. Robertson? I can't see him being the man to do it. But he WILL win this again at some stage.

Re: A look to next season

Postby Rocket_ron

thetubberlad wrote:
rocket_ron wrote:
GJtheaussiestud wrote:i think robbo WC will win AT LEAST 2 ranking tournaments this season

:afro: :D

I think robbo is capable of breaking the crucible curse


No, and I am pretty adamant of that.

Robertson is a very good player, as I've said I think he'll be one of the top three ranking event winners over the next ten years. But to defend a Crucible title takes something special. It hasn't been done in 14 years. In that time Doherty, Higgins (three times), Williams (twice), O'Sullivan (three times), Ebdon, Murphy & Dott have all failed to do it. Nobody has ever succeeded in defending it after a first time win: Hendry, Davis, O'Sullivan, Higgins, Williams, Reardon, Alex Higgins, Spencer, nobody. Robertson? I can't see him being the man to do it. But he WILL win this again at some stage.

yes but, robertson i think has got the bottle

Re: A look to THIS season

Postby Wildey

its not imposible but id say 500/1 for him to do it.

Re: A look to next season

Postby Tubberlad

rocket_ron wrote:
thetubberlad wrote:
rocket_ron wrote:
GJtheaussiestud wrote:i think robbo WC will win AT LEAST 2 ranking tournaments this season

:afro: :D

I think robbo is capable of breaking the crucible curse


No, and I am pretty adamant of that.

Robertson is a very good player, as I've said I think he'll be one of the top three ranking event winners over the next ten years. But to defend a Crucible title takes something special. It hasn't been done in 14 years. In that time Doherty, Higgins (three times), Williams (twice), O'Sullivan (three times), Ebdon, Murphy & Dott have all failed to do it. Nobody has ever succeeded in defending it after a first time win: Hendry, Davis, O'Sullivan, Higgins, Williams, Reardon, Alex Higgins, Spencer, nobody. Robertson? I can't see him being the man to do it. But he WILL win this again at some stage.

yes but, robertson i think has got the bottle

Hendry, Davis and Higgins didn't?
No Champion has reached the semi-finals since Ronnie O'Sullivan in 2002, and Shaun Murphy was the last champion to make the quarter-finals.

Re: A look to THIS season

Postby Tubberlad

randam05 wrote:500/1 ? perhaps 200/1 I think 500 is a bit steep.

<laugh> both odds are ridiculous to be quite honest... but I get what you mean, defending the title is VERY unlikely

Re: A look to THIS season

Postby Wildey

randam05 wrote:500/1 ? perhaps 200/1 I think 500 is a bit steep.

I Dont i think thats is representing how tough it will be perfectly.


   

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