Masters 2010 - SF Discussion!

[cue1]

I think it's time for a:

Come On Selbs

Both matches look like they're going to be brilliant Hopefully they'll live up to expectations, especially the Ron-Mark one I think we may be seeing a rematch of last year's final by the end of today:snooker:

I was just thinking I also want a re-match of last year's final :snooker:

But still, any of the 4 semifinalists is good enough to take the glory by the end of tomorrow

So... Come On Selbs & Come On Ron for a rematch :snooker:

[montoya10]

Selby's tactical game really kills my enjoyment, so please God don't let it happen again

It's interesting that there are so many complaining about how defensive Ebdon is and almost none about the same thing with Selby.. Maybe he has more lovers as he is much younger

I'm going to make a very aggressive prediction, and go on to say that the winner of O'Sullivan-Williams will eventually go on to demolish the other finalist to win it all

[montoya10]

By the way, how many hours left till the match begins?

Note: Please don't post the starting time, I just have to know how much time is left

[gettingbetter]

Selby does manage to score rather heavily and quickly when needed. Ebdon really labours of his shot selection and feathers a lot when building a break, while once Selby is breakbuilding, he is usually fluent. Although his tactical/safety game is good, I find that he often tries to be too creative with it.

[Mr P]

O'Sullivan plays Williams at 1pm, Mark plays Stephen at 7.30pm. I think BBC will be showing all the coverage.

[montoya10]

O'Sullivan plays Williams at 1pm, Mark plays Stephen at 7.30pm. I think BBC will be showing all the coverage.

Ok, thanks for the help

Less than two hours left for the game, then

[Mr P]

Yes, I hour and 30 minutes to be precise.

As you are in Turkey, whats the time difference there?

[montoya10]

GMT +2

That means we've already passed 1 pm here, I suppose

[Mr P]

Yeah, must be Half 1. So the Snooker starts at 3pm for you then. Keep watching the clock...

[montoya10]

I missed some games by confusing the start times in the past. But there's no way on the earth I'll let this one go

So, I'm keeping an eye on the clock, and waiting..

[Mr P]

Do you get the BBC in Turkey?

[montoya10]

Unfortunately not

Eurosport will not be covering the game also, so my only chance is watch it from an online streaming..

One thing that annoyed me really all week was Eurosport's decision to cut the evening session's match and tune in to Dakar Rally, which could have been shown right after a live event is finished..

[missneworleans]

Yeah thats stupid and can't understand why european chanell eurosport must show african cup of nations???

[Odrl]

It's not a bad lineup, especially the first pair. I think the best we've had this season was the Grand Prix where the four best players made it to the SF despite the random draw. That was not the case here unfortunately. I think Maguire's quarter was by far the easiest, while Williams' quarter was perhaps the strongest. But it doesn't matter now. All four players are at the business end of the tournament, and everyone's chances need to be considered.

I am always intrigued by various patterns that follow players or tournaments... O'Sullivan's story says he rarely defends titles, but it also says that it takes a good player to take him out of the Masters. I've been waiting for such a player this week. I didn't think it would be Robertson, but could it be Mark Williams? Since his form crisis began in the 04/05 season, he's played a number of good tournaments where it looked like he was coming back to his best. He won the 2006 China Open, but other than that, there was always some obstacle that was too high for him. O'Sullivan was that obstacle three times: in the 2006 and 2008 World Championship, and in the 2008 Shanghai Masters. On every one of those occasions I had a feeling Williams was either playing the better snooker, or at least equally well as O'Sullivan. But in the actual matches, it turned out that O'Sullivan had another gear, and it really seemed to inspire him to a great performance.

O'Sullivan's performance against Robertson was worthy of a Masters winner, especially his determination and nerve to come from behind. There were a few cracks after the interval of his match against Ebdon, and I thought he could have been in trouble against an in-form player, but in truth, he might have let it slip a little because he didn't really need to play that well. I think Williams' style could suit him. Williams is playing very attacking snooker this week, a lot of the time opening the reds even when the pot is not guaranteed, but he's got more than he's missed. But it has to be said that nobody is likely to punish him more than O'Sullivan. Williams is the only player who has really played two in-form players in his first two matches, but he did play well on both occasions, which makes me think he's not going to put in a bad one here. He used to be such a nerveless player at the business end of tournaments, but he didn't play at all well in the SF of the Grand Prix. I guess what was once routine for him, he now sees as a rare opportunity, and it's harder for him to keep his composure.

Whatever happens, I hope both players produce their best, as this has the potential to be an awesome match. I'm at my most excited. I haven't made my prediction yet, because I can't really decide who to put my faith behind... Let's say 6-4 for Williams.

I'll say a few words about the other match while I'm at it.

I thought Selby played one of the most exciting matches of the season against Allen last night. He showed glimpses of his best, especially in the 2nd and 3rd frame. But after Allen came back at him, he couldn't really find his form, and had to dig deep to win the close frames. I think his ability to relax and think positive when things aren't going his way really helps him sometimes. I thought he played better than he did against Ding and should be favourite tonight. If he raises his game today, and a bit more for the final, you can't count him out.

Stephen Maguire is a player nobody is really counting on this week. And that could work in his favour. I just watched the last four frames of his match against Day, and I don't think he played that badly. He made a couple of handy breaks, although a couple of balls didn't exactly go in cleanly. He's a player that can come out of nowhere and turn it on, so he shouldn't be underestimated. And Selby has been known to underestimate players in the past.

I think both players have a chance to raise their games in this match, but if it's a bit of a struggle, I think Selby's relaxed, positive approach beats Maguire's cue-banging anger every time. I'm quite optimistic that we'll see a good match, and I'll go for 6-4 in favour of Selby.

I wish everyone a good snooker day.

[Mr P]

Because some of the players that play in it come from all over the world, I guess that supporters of the players club would want to watch to see how they get on. Thats the only reason I can think of.