FEATURED: The Race to the Crucible at the China Open

Welcome to the capital of China! From one of the best events of the season in Llandudno to one of the most important in the calendar – the China Open in Beijing!

There are many reasons why the China Open is so important, as well as being an fantastic tournament. I did a countdown on the best snooker events in China, which you can have a read by clicking here. This is an event which not only defines who automatically qualifies for the Crucible, but also to who has to go through the gauntlet of three matches to try and reach the World Championships. There are so many calculations and permutations to who reaches snooker’s Theatre of Dreams and who doesn’t.

Aside from there being longer matches (which we all appreciated in the Tour Championship), there are more important things. There are £225,000 worth of ranking points going to the winner and £90,000 to the runners-up. Even No. 67 Zhao Xintong could jump into the Top 16 by winning the China Open. Since 2016, the total prize fund for the competition has almost doubled. Therefore, there are more ranking points for in most cases, anyone to easily catch anyone to gain advantage in the World Championships or even the qualifiers.

Basically, there is A LOT to play for! And a lot to get through.

The Fight to be in the Right Half of the Draw

Not only that, but the China Open dictates where the Top 16 players are placed in the World Championship draw. Regardless of the outcome, Mark Williams will be seeded No. 1 as he is defending champion.

These are the seeds AS IT STANDS:

Mark Williams (1) vs. David Gilbert (16)

Barry Hawkins (9) vs. Kyren Wilson (8)

Mark Allen (5) vs. Stuart Bingham (12)

Stephen Maguire (13) vs. John Higgins (4)

Mark Selby (3) vs. Luca Brecel (14)

Shaun Murphy (11) vs. Judd Trump (6)

Neil Robertson (7) vs. Ding Junhui (10)

Jack Lisowski (15) vs. Ronnie O’Sullivan (2)

This means that O’Sullivan, Robertson and Trump are in the same half of the draw. I don’t really want to see three of the best players of the season in the same half, to be honest. The top half has a lot of out-of-form players in Hawkins, Higgins, Williams and Wilson. This would be fantastic for in-form player there, Allen. Hopefully, Trump and Robertson chalk up enough points to get to the other half to avoid the most in-form players. Ding could also escape to the top half for a better chance of winning the World Championship by doing well in this tournament.

If Selby wins the China Open, he will return to the No. 1 spot in the rankings. This would mean avoiding Trump in the quarter-finals, which would be great for him because of his recent poor head-to-head record against the Juddernaut. Newly-appointed No. 1 O’Sullivan is not participating in Beijing. The others need a chance to win something without him in an event anyway. Shaun Murphy is the only other Top 16 player absent, having lost to Adam Stefanow in the first round. Therefore, his position is also completely out of his hands.

The Fight for Automatic Qualification

There is an opportunity for someone to steal a golden ticket to snooker’s field of dreams.

Ryan Day, Joe Perry, Ali Carter, Xiao Guodong and Anthony McGill are the closest rivals to the Top 16. No. 14 Luca Brecel, No. 15 Jack Lisowski and No. 16 David Gilbert are obviously the most vulnerable. No. 17 Day is just £15,000 behind Gilbert and £35,000 behind Lisowski. Realistically, it looks like a dogfight between The Angry Farmer and Dynamite. 18th seed Perry is £35,000 behind Gilbert. Therefore, The Gentleman would need a great run in Beijing and pray that Gilbert collapses in the early rounds.

As mentioned before, there are a lot of points available to conjure a number of casualties. The 2016 China Open was the prime example. Ding Junhui and Liang Wenbo were in the Top 16 coming into that event. Because they both lost in the qualifying round, they were replaced by Stephen Maguire (who had to reach the China Open semi-finals to get to the Crucible) and Michael White. As a result, Liang and Ding had to qualify because of their performances in that edition of the China Open.

This shows how cutthroat this competition can be.

The Fight to the Crucible Itself

There are a number of permutations going on further down the rankings that either not many know about or even care about. In the World Championship Qualifying rounds, players ranked No. 17 – No. 80 are seeded and guaranteed to play a lower-ranked opponent. That low-ranking opponent, wherever that player is a professional or an amateur, will be drawn at random.

This is a huge advantage to those who are trying to stay on tour or to perfectly position themselves for next season. In fact, just £1,000 separates No. 79 (Nigel Bond) and No. 82 (Mei Xiwen). Both of these players are still in the China Open draw. No. 80 Sam Baird and No. 81 Joe O’Connor are also in the mix. £10,000 for a win in the first round can go a long way up the rankings for next season. For some, a win can save their career.

To put into perspective, their performance could depend on the possibility of facing Ryan Day or Basem Eltahhan. Joe Perry or Simon Lichtenberg. Ali Carter or Andy Lee. I know which player I would choose to compete against if I want to win £10,000 and get closer to the World Championships!

Supposedly, the higher the ranking, the more likely you will get an easier draw. The No. 17 seed will be drawn with the No. 48 and No. 49 and No. 80 seeded players. However, this does not mean that whoever is the 17th seed will qualify, it gives that person the greatest chance possible to get to the Crucible. Such fine margins end up having significant consequences. E

Ending

There are a lot of permutations that can happen in this event. That is why the China Open is so brilliant. Later, there will be a preview of the draw and there will be further analysis from me to look forward to.

The China Open starts on Monday 1st April – Sunday 7th April. Next, the World Championship Qualifiers start a few days later on the 10th.

We are getting closer to snooker glory at the Crucible, chaps………