After all the hype, after all of the previews, day one of the 2014 World Championship is now well underway, with Ronnie O’Sullivan and Stuart Bingham having started their respective campaigns this morning.
Click below for day one of my now traditional Crucible Diary, which throughout the week will detail any stories of mine, together with bring you quotes from all of the post-match press conferences…
The three day gap between the conclusion of the final qualifying round for this year’s World Championship and the start of play tomorrow morning at the Crucible makes the job of previewing the tournament ever-more difficult.
But this year I am hopeful that I have been able to do the tournament justice, thanks to the help of former world number 3, turned highly respected snooker analyst Neal Foulds, who spoke with me this morning to help preview each of the 16 opening round matches and offer his thoughts as to who will be lifting the famous trophy on 5th May 2014…
Tuesday at Ponds Forge saw the confirmation of the first eight qualifiers for the venue stages of this year’s World Championship and there were (on paper at least), some real surprises, with the likes of former champions Graeme Dott and Mark Williams crashing out.
Click below for a round-up of the day’s eight qualifiers, with quotes from all of the day’s big winners…
The conclusion of the German Masters marks the fifth mid-season revision of the seeding list and although many eyes will now be on the latest provisional money list, which will determine tour places and come into force at the start of next season, there is one last, crucial cut-off to keep an eye on this year on the points list.
The final, sixth mid-season revision of 2013/14 comes at the end of March, following the Players Championship event currently scheduled to take place in Thailand and the final list following that event will be used to determine the seeding list for the 2014 World Championship at the Crucible.
While there remain five events still to be played between now and that cut-off, the new provisional list, on which all points set to drop between now and then have already been removed, throws up more than a few surprises, with Mark Williams, Matthew Stevens, Graeme Dott and Mark Allen among those who as it stands, would have to qualify to play at the Crucible this year…
Hot on the heels of last week’s Wuxi Classic qualifiers at the South West Snooker Academy, the past five days have seen the early rounds of the 2013 Australian Goldfields Open tournament take place at the same venue.
Click below for my round-up of the key stories from the qualifiers, together with links to the results in full and latest projected seedings…
The last 16 line-up is now taking shape at the Welsh Open and the big story today is that Mark Selby’s surprise whitewash at the hands of Joe Perry, combined with a comeback victory for Judd Trump, means that the latter will return to the top of the world rankings after this event. Click below for a round-up of the action from Newport so far…
While many eyes will be on the Masters today, last night saw the conclusion of the qualifiers for the 2013 China Open, another important ranking event on the main tour. Click below for a round-up of the main stories from Sheffield…
With Christmas upon us and a rare few days away from the baize as hit the end of 2012, it is time again to begin my annual (see 2010 and 2011 results), series of ‘best of’ polls for you to vote in. Accordingly, click below to choose your ‘best match’ of 2012, either from my selection below or by entering your own choice…