The Championship League has reached the latter stages with likes of Ronnie O'Sullivan and Judd Trump still in there pitching for title glory - Richard Mann previews the action.
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The Championship League reaches the latter stages this afternoon with the second round of group matches taking place on Tuesday and Wednesday, before finals day on Thursday.
Despite the obvious constraints; no crowds, many of the players clearly short of match practice, and the strict social distancing measures that have meant players have been locked in the Marshall Arena upon arrival, the snooker delivered has already ensured the event has been a success.
That’s not to say all of the fare has been of the highest quality – some of it has made for grim viewing on occasions – while the late start times are unnecessary and will have surely meant many viewers will have turned off before the outcome of several of the groups had been decided.
That’s a shame but ITV deserve plenty of credit for broadcasting all of the action live and there is no doubt the return of snooker and racing – another well executed delivery from ITV at the weekend - has been a real tonic for sports fans.
As for the action itself, Ronnie O’Sullivan, Gary Wilson, Liang Wenbo and Sam Craigie have arguably been the most impressive on the table so far with The Rocket sporting a new moustache as he waltzed through Group 10 without losing a single frame.
Similarly, the enigmatic Wenbo produced some fine snooker when outgunning Mark Selby while Wilson stroked in four centuries when cruising through Group 14.
Having been just about the standout performer last week, Wilson is sure to have title ambitions and it is worth remembering that it's little over a year since the Tyneside potter reached the semi-finals of the World Championship. It might not be coincidence that he has his game in good working order with Sheffield once again drawing closer.
Wilson has already shown he can mix it with the very best, particularly at the Crucible last year, and with Group A appearing not as strong as some of the others at first glance, the 18/1 on offer for him to go all the way here makes some appeal.
As ever, the top of the market is dominated by O’Sullivan and Judd Trump; both safely through the latter stages though, not for the first time this season, Trump wasn’t absolutely-foot perfect in his opening few matches without ever looking in any danger.
Such is the nature of the Trump beast nowadays, it is safe to assume he will get stronger as the tournament goes on. Six ranking titles and counting already this term certainly supports that theory.
Nevertheless, for a player as short as 15/8 in place to lift the trophy on Thursday, Trump must first navigate his way through a fiercely competitive Group B that also features David Gilbert, Barry Hawkins and Ryan Day.
The reigning world champion will certainly have to be on his mettle up against a couple of opponents in Hawkins and Day who signalled potential returns to something like their best form in the first stage, while Gilbert rarely looks out of touch these days with his silky cue action and free-flowing break building always pleasing on the eye.
I won’t be alone in expecting Trump to pass this test with flying colours, just as he has so many others in the last 18 months, and a good workout at this stage will be exactly what he wants ahead of the upcoming Tour Championship and World Championship. However, there will be dangers aplenty before favourite backers can think about getting paid out.
O’Sullivan continues his title bid a day earlier than Trump, Group C getting under way on Tuesday, and the match everyone will want to see here is The Rocket up against this year’s Masters hero Stuart Bingham.
However, as already alluded to, little-known Craigie showcased his vast talent when overpowering Matt Selt, Ali Carter and Dominic Dale on Monday and if anything, the quick turnaround ought to be in his favour given the procedures those returning to Milton Keynes must endure before being cleared to play.
Regular readers of these snooker pages will already be familiar with Craigie’s potential and while his penchant for a good time and lack of professionalism, on occasions at least, has held him back, there is little doubting the raw materials at his disposal.
A 30-minute snapshot of his 3-0 whitewash of Dale to confirm his place in the next stage would have left many viewers, including myself, wondering just why we haven’t seen more of Craigie on terrestrial television until now.
A real natural who times the ball beautifully, Craigie pots and makes big breaks for fun and having hit the ball with such authority in making two centuries against Dale, once again I’m left scratching my head as to why he is currently languishing so far down the rankings. Put simply: there is no excuse and he, too, will know he should be making more of his talents.
The perfect start to this decider for Craigie, a century break of 131 to go 1-0 up against Dale.#ChampionshipLeague pic.twitter.com/9IdrGrzddc
— Championship League (@CLSnooker) June 8, 2020
Still, an event like this gives young players such as Craigie a stage to showcase their abilities against the very best in the game in front of the television cameras. On Monday’s evidence, he looks right at home in this environment.
As opponents go, they don’t get much bigger and better than O’Sullivan and I’m fascinated to see how Craigie fares in against elite company. Bingham, too, will be another severe test and while I’d be surprised to see him navigate his way through the group, he is certainly capable of picking up another scalp along the way.
Another to have impressed so far is the mercurial Wenbo and he will fancy his chances of topping a Group D which lacks star quality, but he has never been one to set your watch by and at this stage and at the same price, I’d prefer to stick with the more reliable Wilson.
Shifting focus to the individual match markets, the 8/13 about Wilson beating Ashley Carty looks fair enough for those happy to play at odds-on but I’ll just about resist with better value to be found elsewhere.
The Group B clash between Gilbert and Day should, on paper at least, be an open and free-scoring match between two heavy hitters but while the latter looked more like his old self when edging past Kyren Wilson last week, his long game still looks out of sync to my eye.
Day is sure to remain dangerous when afforded chances in the balls but while there are clear shoots of promise for the Welshman after a poor season by his high standards, he isn’t there yet and I expect Gilbert to have too many guns for him here.
Gilbert looked very sharp in registering a couple of 3-0 wins to progress last week and if he can replicate that form on Wednesday, the 6/4 for him to beat Day could look very big.
Posted at 1000 BST on 09/06/20
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