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Ssb - that monday feeling
So ten results in and only two 'shocks' so far.
Barry Hawkins played very well indeed to take a 2-1 lead over Mark Selby even if it did then become a struggle to get over the line.
Speaking of struggles, Jimmy White laboured to his 3-1 win over Paul Davison but got there in the end.
Stephen Hendry, Mark Williams and Ding Junhui all breezed through and today Ronnie O'Sullivan plays the final match of the last 64 against mark King.
As every commentator will tell you, you never know which Ronnie will turn up.
But at least he has turned up, unlike in Shanghai, and that should ensure a decent crowd.
O'Sullivan doesn't like playing King and that's reflected in their head-to-head record, which King leads.
But there's not quite as much time to get frustrated in a best of five. He may well take to the shorter format.
Then again...
A word on one aspect of this tournament that needs looking at: the playing of music between frames.
What is the point of this? It reached farcical levels last night when someone pressed 'play' before the re-spot black between Hawkins and Selby in their first frame.
I'm not sure blasting out 'Rocking All Over the World' before a final frame decider adds to the drama. On the contrary, it feels more like an afternoon in a shopping mall.
New ideas should be welcomed and should be tried out.
But when they don't work they should be ditched.
TV Times:
BBC2: 12.30-4pm, 11.50pm-2.40am (BST)
Eurosport International: 1.30-6pm, 8.45-11pm (CET)
British Eurosport: 12.30-5pm, 7-10pm (BST)
More...
Barry Hawkins played very well indeed to take a 2-1 lead over Mark Selby even if it did then become a struggle to get over the line.
Speaking of struggles, Jimmy White laboured to his 3-1 win over Paul Davison but got there in the end.
Stephen Hendry, Mark Williams and Ding Junhui all breezed through and today Ronnie O'Sullivan plays the final match of the last 64 against mark King.
As every commentator will tell you, you never know which Ronnie will turn up.
But at least he has turned up, unlike in Shanghai, and that should ensure a decent crowd.
O'Sullivan doesn't like playing King and that's reflected in their head-to-head record, which King leads.
But there's not quite as much time to get frustrated in a best of five. He may well take to the shorter format.
Then again...
A word on one aspect of this tournament that needs looking at: the playing of music between frames.
What is the point of this? It reached farcical levels last night when someone pressed 'play' before the re-spot black between Hawkins and Selby in their first frame.
I'm not sure blasting out 'Rocking All Over the World' before a final frame decider adds to the drama. On the contrary, it feels more like an afternoon in a shopping mall.
New ideas should be welcomed and should be tried out.
But when they don't work they should be ditched.
TV Times:
BBC2: 12.30-4pm, 11.50pm-2.40am (BST)
Eurosport International: 1.30-6pm, 8.45-11pm (CET)
British Eurosport: 12.30-5pm, 7-10pm (BST)
More...
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