Snooker betting tips: Match bets for Xi'an Grand Prix

Snooker betting tips: Xi'an Grand Prix

1.5pts Daniel Wells to beat Julien Leclerq at 4/6 (William Hill)

1pt Junxu Pang -3.5 frames to beat Paul Deaville at 15/8 (Unibet, Bet MGM, Livescorebet)

1pt Oliver Lines to beat Zhang Anda at 2/1 (General)

Sky Bet odds | Paddy Power | Betfair Sportsbook

Following a pretty intense period of qualifiers, a brand-new event, namely the Xi’an Grand Prix, kicks off the mainstream tour proper on Monday.

While the prize fund is dwarfed somewhat by the Saudi Arabia Masters the following week, it’s still a pretty lucrative event with all the big guns present.

It’s best-of-nine action until the semi-final stage and the first wager I like the look of is DANIEL WELLS to beat Julien Leclerq.

Having dropped off the tour in 2021/22 I would argue Wells played the best snooker of his career holding amateur status, attaining last-16 spots twice the following season (along with a run to the semi-final in the Shoot Out)

Back on tour, Wells also hit the final 16 stage twice last term and both events were in China, which should help his cause here as not everyone can translate their best form over the Pacific.

Leclerq’s potential to be a top-32 player is there to see and he’s one to monitor closely in century and highest break markets given his tremendous scoring power but I think the layers have either given him a shade too much respect or underestimated Wells a tad in this match-up.

There is a recent piece of head-to-head form to go on, a score draw in the Championship League though whether that tells us a great deal is up for debate but given their current rating with me (if not their potential) I make Wells between 4/7 and 8/15 to reach five frames first in this, so the 4/6 is worth snapping up.

A harder match to get a handle on is JUNXU PANG against Paul Deaville, the latter an amateur who is at the embryonic stage of his career.

As a top-up, the scalp of Wu Yize to qualify for this shouldn’t go unnoticed but a foray over to China against a high-level player in Pang who will be very comfortable in this environment is a fairly daunting assignment.

The odd heavy defeat to go along with the occasional excellent win is par for the course for an amateur operating at this level so the alternative handicap looks the way to play this.

The -2.5 line is at 8/11 Pang v 6/5 Deaville is the closest handicap offering but the -3.5 option looks appealing.

On a frame-by-frame assessment, I rate Pang’s chances of winning the match before Deaville manages two frames at 38%, so the 15/8 with the Kambi firms (or the 7/4 available in several other places) is worthy of an investment.

The final bet features Zhang Anda, whose sustained period of excellence last season was one of the more surprising/unfathomable aspects of the campaign.

A narrow defeat to Judd Trump in the English Open Final was followed by victory in the International Championship in his homeland.

To put into context how much he achieved last term, a cursory glance of Cuetracker’s lifetime earnings indicate that Anda won more prize money in 2023/24 than in the rest of his career combined (he’s not a youngster either, at 32).

That presents a conundrum for compilers and punters alike as there is clear proof that Anda is capable of playing at a tournament-winning standard, but his “normal” level isn’t anything to write home about.

An upset against a local wildcard in Shanghai was a meek start to the campaign and at present, I think Mighty Mouse might be vulnerable.

Step forward OLIVER LINES, who looks a shade too big at 2/1 given the aforementioned doubts over Anda.

Lines isn’t bombproof himself given he’s flirted with the tour cut off several times of late, but a nervy 4-3 win over Peifan Lei ensures he’s in the draw for next month’s British Open so his season is beginning to take shape.

A heavy defeat against Ben Woollaston in Wuhan qualifying was disappointing but Lines has always struck me as a slightly streaky player and that’s no bad thing when you are backing him as a big underdog in matches.

Posted at 1110 BST on 17/07/24

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