The German Masters is a fan favourite because of its venue and its large audiences. They are full of passionate and knowledgable people. Unfortunately, they will have to wait until next year because the German Masters is housed in Milton Keynes due to coronavirus fears.
Unlike the Home Nations tournaments, there are only 32 players to focus on from the start. It is also quite an unpredictable field too. It is worth bearing in mind that some players will have more match practice than others. Some have played in the Championship League, the Masters and/or the first few groups of the WST Pro Series too.
The Draw Lowdown
Only seven out of the best sixteen players are in the initial draw. Just 14 professionals out of the Top 32 have a chance to lift the title. Incredibly, ten players outside of the Top 64 are in it to win it and that excludes one amateur. Though many of us believe that this player is too good to be an amateur, two-time ranking winner Michael White is indeed that amateur.
Ronnie O’Sullivan chose not to play and Mark Selby, Neil Robertson and Kyren Wilson are already knocked out of this event. Some may assume that Judd Trump would to be the obvious victor. That would be a foolish thought, as are there many proven winners in the draw. Because Trump was tested positive for COVID-19, which forced him to miss the Masters, we don’t know how badly affected Trump, as well as Jack Lisowski, will be by the virus. This means making predictions will be more difficult than it already is.
Higgins, Murphy and Bingham will see this as a great opportunity to get a ranking title under their belts. These players had many flashes of brilliance in the Masters, especially Higgins by reaching the final. It’s amazing to realise that Higgins and Bingham haven’t won an event in over a year! Unfortunately, as of Tuesday, Higgins has been tested positive for COVID-19 and has been forced to withdraw from the event.
:focal(1296x580:1298x578)/origin-imgresizer.eurosport.com/2021/01/17/2973228-61020488-2560-1440.jpg)
This could also be a turning point for Dominic Dale and Louis Heathcote. Both of these players are in the second year of their initial tour card and will need vital points to reach the Top 64. Jak Jones, Pang Junxu and Robbie Williams are by far the best players outside of the Top 64 and they are also worth a look.
Draw
All rounds are BO9 matches, except the BO11 semi-finals and the final, which is a BO17.
Section 1
Judd Trump (1) vs. Mark Davis
Duane Jones vs. Joe Perry (17)
Kacper Filipiak vs. Ding Junhui (9)
Dominic Dale vs. Stephen Maguire (8)
Quarter-final winner: Judd Trump vs. Stephen Maguire
Section 2
Shaun Murphy (5) vs. Jamie O’Neill
Jordan Brown vs. Graeme Dott (21)
Barry Hawkins (20) vs. Ryan Day
Liang Wenbo (29) vs. Jak Jones
Quarter-final winner: Shaun Murphy vs. Barry Hawkins
Section 3
Fergal O’Brien vs. Michael White (a)
Mark Joyce vs. Joe O’Connor
Tom Ford (22) vs. Yuan Sijun
Stuart Carrington w/o John Higgins (6)
Quarter-final winner: Michael White vs. Tom Ford
Section 4
Pang Junxu vs. Robbie Williams
Stuart Bingham (10) vs. Zhou Yuelong (23)
Louis Heathcote vs. Jack Lisowski (15)
Luca Brecel (31) vs. Noppon Saengkham
Quarter-final winner: Stuart Bingham vs. Luca Brecel
2021 German Masters winner: Stephen Maguire vs. Stuart Bingham
The German Masters will take place between Wednesday 27th – Sunday 31st January at the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes, England.
