World Open 2012

[Rane]

Not sure what happens to Murphy from time to time, he is all over the place today. And it's not like Selby is putting him under great pressure, he really has no excuse.

yes in spells he maybe has been the best player this season, but then he gets these strange days, when everything goes wrong for him.

[Odrl]

Ok, looking ahead to the semi-finals...

Mark Selby v. Mark Allen: Really looking forward to this one. The last few matches they played have all been great entertainment, with lots of banter between the two players. It's just a shame we can't hear the sound very well this week. Selby has had the better of this rivalry in the past, but it's always been very close. I think Allen has a great chance to take this one. He finished his match with King very quickly, so I didn't get to see much of it, but he must have played very well. He certainly did against Trump, scoring and potting at his best, with a great desire to win. Selby himself is playing alright, about as well as he did for most of the Welsh Open. It just shows what a tough player he is to beat, because we've seen him play a lot better than this in the past. Still, he is at the business end again. I think he has the edge in decision-making, playing the right shots when the going gets tough. He is also the more experienced at this stage, and he should be better tactically, keeping Allen off the table if Allen proves the stronger scorer on the day. And that's exactly my feeling here. I think it will go close, possibly a 6-5, with Allen a slight favourite on current form.

Stephen Lee v. Robert Milkins: First of all, well done to Milkins for his performance against Higgins, the best he has ever played on the big stage. I thought he would be outclassed, even when he went 2-0 ahead I thought he would crack if Higgins applied the pressure. He did apply it, but Milkins responded very well. It was a very fluent attacking match, and it should be very similar against Lee. What to say about Lee? Also very impressive, even more than Milkins in fact. He has thrashed all of his opponents this week, with some relentless scoring, definitely his best late-career form. Milkins has never been in a final, this being only his second semi-final, but Lee has done it often at this stage, so he has to be the favourite here. I think a 6-3 or a 6-4 is the most likely. Could be a quick match, even if it's close.

Looking forward to the weekend!

[narl]

What exactly is on the floor thats making all this noise when theyre walking around the table? Sounds like its really thin loose wood or something.

[liquidsymphony]

Stephen Lee to Win Tourny he was 10-1 Last Night now Only 3/1 3rd Fav!

to be honest nothing could please me more as i'm a big fan of lee : trully a nice guy really talended and what a tremendous and smooth cue action .

[montoya10]

Yes, the two last seasons can´t be compared to the past. You could say, a new baseline is about to be created right now. It looks like 70 or 75 centuries in a season is the goal to aim for. That said when things are going his way, Selby probably is the best breakbuilder around at the moment.

Even that mark won't be that much of an achievement in my eyes. Thinking about that a little, I really come to the conclusion that the more frames you play the easier you can get into a rhythm and fire century after century.
In other words, hitting 70 in a season with such heavy schedule is slightly less of an achievement compared to hitting 50 back in the old days, albeit it's still a huge challenge for players, there's no doubt about that.

[montoya10]

I'm going to make Allen and Lee slight favourites for the final, though, from what I have seen this week so far, Milkins and Selby aren't too far behind of those two in terms of performance.
And yes, it will be really good if Stephen went on to win this one. His talent deserves more than what he has accomplished and it looks like his game is still up there in front as far as his cue action is concerned.

[liquidsymphony]

I'm going to make Allen and Lee slight favourites for the final, though, from what I have seen this week so far, Milkins and Selby aren't too far behind of those two in terms of performance.
And yes, it will be really good if Stephen went on to win this one. His talent deserves more than what he has accomplished and it looks like his game is still up there in front as far as his cue action is concerned.

+1 ..........

[SnookerFan]

So, anybody got up at 6:30am on a Saturday to watch?

[tomasloca]

So, anybody got up at 6:30am on a Saturday to watch?

I did, but 7.30am in Italy

[Odrl]

So, anybody got up at 6:30am on a Saturday to watch?

Slept an extra hour. Had to be done...

[SnookerFan]

Slept an extra hour. Had to be done...

Part-time fan.

[SnookerFan]

Just kidding. You're talking to the lame-o that has the week off for the China Open, so he can get up at 6am to watch matches all week. :lemo:

[Odrl]

Just kidding. You're talking to the lame-o that has the week off for the China Open, so he can get up at 6am to watch matches all week. :lemo:

Nice one. Getting up is one thing, I do that myself, but actually taking the week of is some commitment.

I've not been very disciplined this week, missed a couple of frames most days. But at least this match has some way to go, especially now that Allen has pulled it back to 2-3. He had half a chance to make the highest break with the help of a free ball. If Selby hadn't used up a red, Allen would have had a great chance for a 150+.

[Odrl]

Excellent frame, not surprising it's gone to Selby. Time for something special from Allen now.

[Odrl]

Excellent frame under pressure. Allen keeps impressing in these positions, very determined from a couple of frames behind.