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All-Star World Championship: first-round matches

Postby Pink Ball » 04 Apr 2020 Read

Welcome to the 'first round' thread of the All-Star World Championship.

Simply nominate up to three first-round matches that you feel should be included in next week's poll stage (Phase Two). Do not nominate a match that has already been nominated. A maximum of 50 first-round matches will go forward to Phase Two, at which stage we will whittle the nominations down to 16 winners.

Deadline is some time next Friday (April 10).

ALL MATCHES NOMINATED MUST BE FROM THE CRUCIBLE ERA (1977-2019)

The nominees so far are:
1985: Steve Davis 10-8 Neal Foulds
1984: Neal Foulds 10-9 Alex Higgins
1987: Joe Johnson 10-9 Eugene Hughes
1989: Stephen Hendry 10-9 Gary Wilkinson
1992: Peter Ebdon 10-4 Steve Davis
1994: Nigel Bond 10-9 Cliff Thorburn
1998: Jimmy White 10-4 Stephen Hendry
1999: Stephen Hendry 10-8 Paul Hunter
2000: David Gray 10-9 Ronnie O'Sullivan
2001: Joe Swail 10-9 Shaun Storey
2003: Ken Doherty 10-9 Shaun Murphy
2005: Ronnie O'Sullivan 10-9 Stephen Maguire
2006: Nigel Bond 10-9 Stephen Hendry
2008: Peter Ebdon 10-9 Jamie Cope
2010: Stephen Hendry 10-9 Zhang Anda
2011: Judd Trump 10-8 Neil Robertson
2013: Dechawat Poomjaeng 10-9 Stephen Maguire
2017: Marco Fu 10-9 Luca Brecel
2019: James Cahill 10-8 Ronnie O'Sullivan
2019: Judd Trump 10-9 Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
Last edited by Pink Ball on 04 Apr 2020, edited 8 times in total.

Re: All-Star World Championship: first-round matches

Postby SnookerEd25 » 04 Apr 2020 Read

Dan-cat wrote:
SnookerEd25 wrote:1992 : STEVE DAVIS 4-10 Peter Ebdon
1999 : STEPHEN HENDRY 10-8 Paul Hunter
2013 : STEPHEN MAGUIRE 9-10 Dechawat Poomjaeng


The first one... scoreline doesn't suggest a great match?


It's more to do with the overall story. Davis was still near the peak of his powers, albeit 3 years removed from his last world title and destined not to win another. At the time, many still believed he had at least one more in him. He hadn't lost a first round match in a decade, since the infamous Tony Knowles thrashing in '82, and had reached at least the semi-final in every year since. He was no.2 to Hendry in the world rankings; i'm not sure if he could have regained the no.1 spot or not with a run in the tournament but he was still seen as a huge favourite for this match.

Ebdon was almost unknown, was appearing on this stage for the first time and, in contrast to what he was to become later, was flashy, pony-tailed, emotional and tempestuous. He showed no sign of nerves in hitting a 92 in the first, although Davis opened a 3-1 lead at the MSI, and looked in control. Back came to lead 5-4 at the end of the first session, though most assumed that Davis would use all his experience to eventually prevail. What came next was almost unfathomable as Ebdon started to take on the most outrageous shots - and get them. Davis tried everything in his armoury to wrest some kind of foothold in the avalanche that was going against him but just could do nothing to stop a young Ebdon taking an impressive scalp. As he said in the post-match conference "I just felt super-charged out there."

He did something similar in R2 to respected, though hardly invincible, no.14 seed Martin Clark, opened up a 7-1 lead with breathtaking snooker, before prevailing 13-4 and was being seen as a dangerous outsider for the title, though the wily and experienced Terry Griffiths gave an old-school masterclass to keep him at arms length and end the adventure with a comfortable 13-7 win in the QF.

That first round match though was memorable for all who saw it.

Re: All-Star World Championship: first-round matches

Postby vodkadiet1 » 04 Apr 2020 Read

SnookerEd25 wrote:Hendry-Wilkinson good call. I had trouble narrowing down to 3; that one missed my cut.


I also liked Tony Knowles vs Tony Jones in 1985. I had that one next on my list.

Re: All-Star World Championship: first-round matches

Postby SnookerEd25 » 04 Apr 2020 Read

vodkadiet1 wrote:
SnookerEd25 wrote:Hendry-Wilkinson good call. I had trouble narrowing down to 3; that one missed my cut.


I also liked Tony Knowles vs Tony Jones in 1985. I had that one next on my list.


I remember that; unfancied Jones gave the stud a right scare <ok>

Re: All-Star World Championship: first-round matches

Postby vodkadiet1 » 04 Apr 2020 Read

SnookerEd25 wrote:
vodkadiet1 wrote:
SnookerEd25 wrote:Hendry-Wilkinson good call. I had trouble narrowing down to 3; that one missed my cut.


I also liked Tony Knowles vs Tony Jones in 1985. I had that one next on my list.


I remember that; unfancied Jones gave the stud a right scare <ok>


A real topsy-turvy match. Knowles was 4-0 up, trailed 5-8, and then won the next 5 for the 10-8 victory. And on the other table Steve Davis prevailed 10-8 against Neal Foulds. (Good Friday 1985).
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