World Championship 2009 - QF discussion!

[hegeland]

So, it's time for the quarter-finals [/U](if you want, you can check out the full schedule here http://www.thesnookerforum.com/board...ad.php?t=17357).

* Denotes first session (Frame 1-8)
** Denotes second session (Frame 9-16)
*** Denotes third session (Frame 17-25)

Tuesday 28 April
10.00
QF1- Mark Allen v Ryan Day *
QF3- Shaun Murphy v Stephen Hendry *
14.30
QF2- John Higgins v Mark Selby *
QF4- Neil Robertson v Stephen Maguire *
19.00
QF1- Mark Allen v Ryan Day **
QF3- Shaun Murphy v Stephen Hendry **

Wednesday 29 April
10.00
QF2- John Higgins v Mark Selby **
QF3- Shaun Murphy v Stephen Hendry ***
14.30
QF1- Mark Allen v Ryan Day ***
QF4- Neil Robertson v Stephen Maguire **
19.00
QF2- John Higgins v Mark Selby ***
QF4- Neil Robertson v Stephen Maguire ***

Discuss!

[Rane]

An amazing line up and not least we have already got rid of O´Sullivan. I hope Higgins and Selby can repeat the 2007 final.

[Alex0paul]

6 of the top 8 through so it shouldn't be a shock. The quarter finals seem come and go with a flash.

[superaussie]

alex

who do you think wont win the title this year out of the 8 players left ?

[Maija]

Right. Quite a lineup, that. My only question now is: How do I keep the family happy whilst watching all this snooker?

Suggestions very welcome (not to include incapacitating of said family).

[Alex0paul]

alex

who do you think wont win the title this year out of the 8 players left ?

Strange question lol. I don't think Allen, Day, Hendry and probably Robertson will win. I say Robertson only because he has a dire record against Maguire and he hasn't played that well. (Although Maguire hasn't either)

[spike]

All 4 quarter finals look good on paper and hopefully they will turn out to be that way.
There isn't one quarter final that stands out from the rest for me but still looking forward to them all.

[barracuda911]

I hope Robertson can win. Failing that, Higgins.
Not that they can't, but I don't think Day or Allen will win.
You can never write off former champions, unlike Dotty, so Hendry is still a likely 09 champion.
The betting agencies will make a fortune...the tournament is wide open.

[Alex0paul]

Amazing to think that Selby and Higgins have met 4 times in the last 5 years at the Crucible. Higgins' wins have all been by a 5 frames margin too.

[JiangYu]

Amazing to think that Selby and Higgins have met 4 times in the last 5 years at the Crucible. Higgins' wins have all been by a 5 frames margin too.

Nice statistic but I think Selby can outtake Higgins by one frame

[Zoe]

I find the scheduling for the quarter-finals to be a bit unfair. QF3 has an evening session on Tuesday and then a morning session on Wednesday and Q4 has consecutive sessions on Wednesday. QF1 and QF2 have good schedules.

In the second round there used to be match that went Saturday afternoon, Sunday evening, Monday morning and another that went Sunday afternoon, Monday afternoon, Monday evening but they changed that so I think they should change the quarter finals so QF3 stays with QF1 through all sessions and the same for QF4 with QF2.

[Odrl]

I think all four matches are very well balanced and incredibly tough to call. I can't commit either way in any of them, I've predicted a 13-11 scoreline in three of them, hoping for some extra points if they finish between 13-10 and 13-12.

Day-Allen: Allen was impressive in knocking the 1st seed out, so we know he is ready to cope with the pressure. He's been potting and scoring well, he's not been involved in many scrappy frames, and I don't think he will be against Day either. Day hasn't really been tested so far, but seems to be playing just as well. They've played a couple of times in the last two seasons, Allen winning in their last two meetings. Slight edge to Allen perhaps, as Day is more likely to crack under the pressure.

Higgins-Selby: I don't think Selby has lost to Higgins since their WC final in 2007, and they've played quite a few times since then. There were signs before their matches that Selby was in great form, and it was never really a surprise to see him win. I think it's the opposite this time, Higgins has just played a great match, scoring heavily, and playing as good as it gets tactically. Selby has been involved in a lot of slow, scrappy frames, but that's his forte really. He can't expect to dominate in the safety exchanges against Higgins though, he will need to raise his game. The danger for Higgins is a repeat of the 3rd session of the 2007 final, where he lost all six frames, after Selby forced his own tempo on the match.

Murphy-Hendry: I'm looking forward to this one. It's tough to see Murphy in this form having a bad session. He has shown willingness to play a game that doesn't suit a specific opponent in the past. He will be aware that an in-form Hendry can outscore him and will probably try to keep it tight. Hendry has been known to have a weak morning session before, so will need to start strongly. He had a solid morning session against Ding. If he's on his A-game, I could see him winning sessions 5-3 or so, if it's B-games, Murphy is favourite.

Maguire-Robertson: I expected this match. It should be close again. They've had some good matches lately, Robertson has only won once. I'm expecting some fireworks here, Robertson was extremely fired up against Carter, and Maguire is becoming quite a rival for him. Maguire hasn't impressed so far, but I can't really read the signs with Maguire. He seems to turn it on at random, there's no build up with his game. Robertson is a bit more predictable, you can see him slowly building up his form as the tournament goes on. I'm sure he'll be up for this match, but with Maguire's record against him... slight edge to Maguire.

[RocketRoy1983]

Shaun Murphy SHOULD prove too strong for Hendry. Behind Shaun id like to see Maguire win the title.

[RocketRoy1983]

Change at number 1 should Maguire win the title?

[gettingbetter]

Don't think so, although I'm not 100% sure. I think if O'Sullivan was knocked out in the first round and if Maguire won, then a changing of the gaurd would of been on the cards.