International Championship 2015 - Discussion

[SnookerFan]

This Mad Bid advert annoys me.

The postman has no right to ask how the guy can afford his deliveries.

[DeanH]

superb play and grit by David Gilbert to get through to his first final

(regardless of a person in the audience attempting to put him off through out the match - phone, movement, noise - maybe they had a bet on Uh-Nooh going through! ))

some tetchy play by both but understandable being the semi with a lot of money (both their biggest I think) at stake

[Neil Taperell]

Seems to have hit a bit of form Gilbert . Done well in his last 2 Tournaments .

Always nice to see different faces in the latter stages of Tournaments .

[mikeyd100]

Well done Gilbert, no need to run back to the farm just yet

[SnookerFan]

I'm not the jealous type normally, but I am insanely jealous of anybody watching the Higgins vs Selby, multi-session match tomorrow. I chose the wrong weekend to be away from home.

[Odrl]

A decent match, and a pretty good attempt at the comeback from Un-Nooh. Unfortunately he missed too many sitters in the first session and in the first three frames of the second session. Black off the spot is not his strongest shot it seems, probably problems with concentration more than anything.

Well done to Gilbert for the biggest win of his career so far. I suspect the final will be one match too many, but you never know in snooker... :smile:

[DeanH]

I'm not the jealous type normally, but I am insanely jealous of anybody watching the Higgins vs Selby, multi-session match tomorrow. I chose the wrong weekend to be away from home.

that was poor planning on your part SF :wink-new:

Gilbert has jumped from #41 to 21 and if he wins could squeeze into the top 16!
what a week for him!

[Byrom]

that was poor planning on your part SF :wink-new:

Gilbert has jumped from #41 to 21 and if he wins could squeeze into the top 16!
what a week for him!

Yeah he done well in last few events and I see in interview he credits his new cue - been a pro 10 years and finally gets his reward which is fantastic - he says the money he has earned is life changing for him and his wife - sounds like a really nice bloke and although a big underdog I hope he goes out there and does himself proud.

[j6uk]

gilberts a very nice player, good temperment, scores heavy always at the table, and you can see he practices hard. you dont look that good in the balls without the work. j robertson, burns, are a few other talents with hard games

[Odrl]

So, who do you think is going to win tomorrow?

A best-of-17 between two of the best players in the world, so it should be one of the highlights of the season outside of the WC and the major finals, as was last year's semi between Allen and Williams. Higgins and Selby have met in quite a few memorable matches over the years, my favourite being the quarter-final of the 2009 World Championship, which saw Selby open with three successive centuries, before Higgins got back into the match with some superb snooker of his own. The rest of the match was very close through, and the quality of safety play was some of the best I can remember in the time I've been watching snooker, particularly in the final session. I think the decider was re-racked twice and ultimately won by Higgins in a single visit. The 2007 World final was a cracking match as well, Higgins leading 12-4 after the first day, but Selby came back very strongly on Monday to get within a frame at 14-13. He never got much of a chance after that though, as Higgins played superbly in the last four frames to close out the match. Selby has had the better of their rivalry in the 2007-2010 period, but unfortunately they have only met in one proper match since then, in the Masters two seasons ago. You may remember that match as well, Higgins getting two kicks when he was in for the match in both of the last two frames, and Selby winning yet another decider at the Masters, helped immensely by a superb snooker he played behind the green close to the baulk cushion...

Anyway, the balance of power is a little different these days. Selby is the world number one, while Higgins is recovering after a period of fairly poor results. I say "recovering", but of course he holds two major titles now, having won the Welsh Open last season and the Australian Open at the start of this season, while Selby is the reigning German Masters and China Open champion. Higgins has impressed me slightly more this week. At one point he won 16 frames in a row over the course of three matches, the highlight probably being his performance against Murphy. His potting and scoring form is definitely back, and he seems to be in a very attacking mood, taking on a lot of difficult pots and getting them, such as the crazy pink he got to win the final frame of his match against Perry. On the other hand, Selby's match against Robertson wasn't the classic we were expecting, and Selby kind of lost his composure a little after failing to push on from 4-2 up, which is unlike him. He has a habit of raising his game when it matters most though, so I expect him to be up for it tomorrow.

History shows that whenever Higgins brings his A-game to a match, he generally wins, regardless of how his opponent is playing. I think he is close to his best this week, certainly closer than Selby is. But then again, players of Higgins' age are prone to inconsistency, and sometimes they just struggle for no apparent reason. Higgins' record in major semi-finals is superb though, so I would make him favourite to win tomorrow. I will go for a 9-7, although I would prefer a 9-8 either way. Hoping for a classic... :smile:

[j6uk]

9-0 or 9-3 higgins, monies going on

[DeanH]

International Championship 2015 - Discussion

as I have said before I have a soft spot for David Gilbert as he was the first pro player I met live and also he was the player I saw on the first pro match I saw live and have followed his matches online since.
He has a good attitude on and off the table and this week's results show solid background of practice and control.
Definitely time to shine
Whoever he plays on Sunday will be a massive event for him and I'm sure he can continue his current form.
Who wins tomorrow? difficult to call :wink:

[motorhead]

Higgins getting two kicks when he was in for the match in both of the last two frames, and Selby winning yet another decider at the Masters, helped immensely by a superb snooker he played behind the green close to the baulk cushion...

Oh yea I remember that, thanks for reminding me! I was celebrating so much haha.
True John's been impressive, I still give a littlle hedge to Selby but looks like it could be close indeed. Hoping for 9-6/9-7 for Mark

[Odrl]

Lovely session of snooker. Great start from Higgins, and that clearance to take a 5-1 lead would have broken most people's resolve, but Selby once again did brilliantly to limit his losses. He is still in the match at only 5-3 down. I am still going for a narrow Higgins win, but it could go either way. Looking forward to the second session. :smile:

[Skypigeon]

where can I find streaming for Higgins's quarter??