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[Smallville22]

Snooker - Higgins advances to Indian Open second round

Scotland’s John Higgins thrashed England’s Joel Walker 4-0 to reach the second round of the Indian Open on Tuesday.
The four-times world champion was aided by a string of mistakes from Walker, including three fouls in the opening frame, as he sailed into a 2-0 lead before sealing an easy victory with breaks of 76 and 61 in frames three and four respectively.
“It's the best table that I have played on all year,” said Higgins. "I was lucky today. It was Joel's first match on the TV and he gave me a lot of chances.
“I have not been playing well of late because I was tinkering with the cue that I changed a few times, tried different sizes.
“But now, I am happy with my cueing and hopefully, win a few matches. I capitalised on my breaks as the best-of-seven-frames is a difficult format.”
Elsewhere there were surprises as 89th seed Gary Wilson knocked out 20th seed Dominic Dale without conceding a frame and India’s Pankaj Advani overcame Marcus Campbell 4-1 despite sitting 43 places below his rival in the seeding order.

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - Williams thrashes Selby in India

Mark Williams thrashed second seed Mark Selby 4-1 in the second round of the Indian Open on Wednesday.
Williams looked far above his world ranking of 18 as breaks of 50, 72, 69 and 100 saw him cause the shock of the tournament and set up a third round match with Aditya Mehta.
Fifth seed Stephen Maguire won a tight encounter 4-3 against Tom Ford to progress to round three of the Indian Open.
Maguire took the first frame with runs of 36 and 49 but Ford fought right back to take a scrappy second frame that saw Maguire construct the highest break – a 40 but still went down 71-52.
Maguire was first to the baize in the third frame but his 59 was not enough as Ford took the opportunity to make a 79 and take the advantage.
Runs of 42 and 18 saw Maguire take the fourth 60-52 but Fiord replied in kind to take the fifth courtesy of runs of 29 and 42 to secure the fifth 71-1.
But the Scot drew on his wealth of experience with a break of 93 to send the match into a decider that Maguire ground out 54-46 to progress to the next round.
Top seed Neil Robertson overcame England’s Rod Lawler 4-2 whilst John Higgins hammered China’s Li Yan 4-0.

Indian Open round two results

Stephen Maguire [5] 4 - 3 Tom Ford [23]

Aditya Mehta [71] 4 – 1 Hammad Miah [99]

Ding Junhui [11] 4– 3 Mark Joyce [46]

Mark Davis [15] 4 – 1 Michael Holt [25]

Anthony McGill [44] 4 – 1 Fergal O'Brien [32]

Liang Wenbo [33] 4 – 2 Dechawat Poomjaeng

Michael White [31] 4 – 3 Zhang Anda [73]

Robbie Williams [76] 4 – 1 Andrew Higginson [22]

Mark Williams [17] 4 – 1 Mark Selby [2]

Mike Dunn [61] 4 – 0 Ratchayothin Yotharuck

Joe Perry [19] 4 – 2 Ricky Walden [9]

Neil Robertson [1] 4 – 2 Rod Lawler [57]

John Higgins [6] 4 – 0 Li Yan [82]

Stuart Bingham [8] 4 – 2 T Thirapongpaiboon [72]

Gary Wilson [89] 4 – 3 Marco Fu [13]

Pankaj Advani [70] 4 – 2 Mark Allen [10]

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - Williams and Bingham lose to local heroes at Indian Open

World number 12 Stuart Bingham was dumped out of the Indian Open by local hope Pankaj Advani.
World number 70 Advani, who beat Ruhr Open winner Mark Allen in the second round, took another huge scalp in the last-16 as he earned a tense win over the world number 12 with a superb 86 in the final frame
Advani had raced into a 3-1 lead despite Bingham firing a 117 in the second frame.
Bingham struck back with breaks of 72 and 119 to force a decider and got a start in the seventh frame as he got to 30 points, but let his opponent in and Advani grabbed his chance brilliantly.
Mark Williams was also shocked by a home hope in round three going down 4-2 to Aditya Mehta.
Williams took the first frame before breaks of 54 and 66 secured Mehta an advantage that Williams immediately cut in a scrappy fourth frame.
However, Mehta, seeded 71st for the tournament, took the next two frames to move into the next round.
Ding Junhui also made it into the quarter-finals with a 4-2 win over John Higgins, while Anthony McGill and Robbie Williams also came through.
Neil Robertson, Michael White and Stephen Maguire also progressed to quarter-final stage.

Indian Open last-16 results:

DING JUNHUI 4 v 2 JOHN HIGGINS

ANTHONY MCGILL 4 v 2 JOE PERRY

MIKE DUNN 0 v 4 ROBBIE WILLIAMS

STUART BINGHAM 3 v 4 PANKAJ ADVANI

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - Ding overcomes Robertson in India

Ding Junhui continued his quest for Indian Open glory with a 4-2 win over world number one Neil Robertson.
Ding will face Robbie Williams in the last four on Friday after he completed a 4-0 win over Anthony McGill.
Stephen Maguire was a 4-3 winner over Michael White while Aditya Mehta won the 'Indian derby' with a 4-3 victory over Pankaaj Advani.

QUARTER FINALS

NEIL ROBERTSON 2-4 DING JUNHUI

ANTHONY MCGILL 0-4 ROBBIE WILLIAMS

MICHAEL WHITE 3-4 STEPHEN MAGUIRE

PANKAJ ADVANI 3-4 ADITYA MEHTA

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - Mehta to meet Ding in Indian Open final

Aditya Mehta will face Ding Junhui in the final of the Indian Open after he beat Stephen Maguire 4-3 in the second semi-final.
It took three visits to the table and runs of 10, 32 and 42 for Mehta to secure the first frame before breaks of 81 and 132 opened up a three-frame advantage.
However, Maguire, seeded fifth, drew on his experience to claw level with breaks of 68, 48 and 61 to send the match to a decider.
Mehta eventually prevailed in a tense, scrappy final frame 67-45 to make the Indian Open’s inaugural final having yesterday become the first Indian to reach the semi-finals of a ranking event with a 4-3 win over countryman Pankaj Advani.
Earlier, Ding made light work of 76th seed Robbie Williams with a 4-1 semi-final win to progress to the final.
Ding, seeded 11th for the tournament, raced into a three-frame lead courtesy of breaks of 68, 59 and an impressive 142 before Williams cut the arrears with runs of 20 and 67 in the fourth frame.
While Williams was first to get his hand on the table in frame five, he could only muster a 28 before Ding wrapped up the match courtesy of two visits.

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - Ding cruises to Indian Open title

Ding Junhui won the first ranking event to be held in India after a 5-0 final whitewash victory over local hero Aditya Mehta.
Mehta's fairytale run in the tournament came to an abrupt end at the Meridien Hotel in New Delhi as his Chinese opponent collected an eighth ranking title - his second in a row after his Shanghai Masters success last month.
The last player to win back-to-back ranking events in one season was Ronnie O'Sullivan 10 years ago when he took home the European Open and then the Irish Masters.
Ding took the opening frame with a 52 clearance after Mehta failed to take several chances to get off the mark, and the home hope only potted two reds in the other four frames as Junhui consigned him to his chair for almost the duration of the final.
Breaks of 81, 107, 93 and 100 secured the trophy for Ding and continued his excellent run of form.
"I think I am playing the best snooker of my career," Ding said. "I have improved and I'm stronger. I still have a lot of things to learn.
"It feels great to be the champion at the first ever ranking tournament in India," added Ding, who beat the likes of John Higgins and Neil Robertson in reaching the final.
"Especially to play against Aditya in the final. I'm proud for myself and I'm enjoying this. I'll rest for the next few days then hope to do well in the next tournament."
Mehta, who landed his biggest pay day with a cheque for £25,000, said: "I have learned a lot from this tournament and there are a lot of positives. I have reached milestones ever year in my career and this is the greatest so far.
"My hard work is bearing fruit. I want to keep achieving my goals and make a career out of snooker.
"A few years ago I would never have predicted this. My heart has been in the right place and I have put the right amount of work in, and shown myself that nothing is impossible.
"I am very proud to have represented India in this tournament and for the fact that the event has been successful.

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - Authorities declare war on betting markets to fight fixing

Snooker authorities believe monitoring international betting markets is the most crucial step towards curbing the menace of match-fixing, which rose to prominence recently with the banning of a leading professional.
Former world number five Stephen Lee was handed a 12-year ban last month relating to corruption in seven matches the Briton played in 2008 and 2009, including the UK and world championships. Lee is appealing the sentence.
"The point for me is if you are going to fix a match, normally it's for people to win money by betting," Nigel Mawer, chairman of the disciplinary committee of the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA), told Reuters.
"So it's crucial that we can monitor betting markets worldwide. It gives us the opportunity to investigate."
Match-fixing has reared its ugly head time and again in more popular sports like soccer and cricket.
The scale of the problem facing the multi-billion dollar soccer industry was exposed in February when European police and prosecutors said hundreds of games may have been rigged by a Singapore-based syndicate.
Previously, three Pakistani cricketers were handed jail terms and bans for a fixing scandal surrounding a test against England at Lord's in 2010.
Former Scotland Yard detective Mawer believes one key approach to solving the issue is to maintain good working relationships with the gambling industry and the gambling commission in the United Kingdom.
"What that does mean is that often I will know if there's a movement in the betting market before a match is even being played," he said in a telephone interview.
"That's very useful because it gives us a chance at early intervention."
As professional snooker aims to gain popularity in new markets, the importance of monitoring betting industries outside Britain and putting in preventive measures has grown.
To suit those needs, the WPBSA tied up with Qatar-based International Centre for Sport Security (ICSS) last week.
"One of the most important thing that's going to come out of the partnership for us is that they will provide us with the ability to monitor betting worldwide which will extend our coverage," Mawer added.
The ICSS, which counts the European Professional Football Leagues and the International Ice Hockey Federation among its clients, has a team of investigators specialising in sports integrity and has sources in sports betting globally.
"As the sport gets more popular, there's more interest, it's more televised, there will be more betting on the sport and the risk will go up," Jake Marsh, an integrity consultant at ICSS, told Reuters.
"The more money gets involved there will be more chances of corruption."
The firm also monitors and collects information on the activities of international criminals who target and commit sport betting corruption or fraud.
Mawer is confident that the preventive measures, besides educating players, will suffice in curbing match-fixing.
His confidence stems from the fact that he has had to investigate only four cases of corruption since starting his role with the WPBSA in 2011.
"The Steven Lee case has sent shockwaves across snooker," he added. "But it helps players who have to make a decision if they have an approach.
"The Lee case will help them make the right decision and say no to an approach and build confidence in the players and I think now they will report if there were any approaches."

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - Ding survives scare as big names fall in China

Ding Junhui survived a major scare in the opening round of the International Championship in Chengdu before beating fellow Chinese player Cao Yupeng 6-5.
Ding become the first player to win back-to-back ranking events in the same season with his recent success in Shanghai and India but his hot streak nearly ended at this £625,000 ranking event in West China.
Breaks of 73, 52, 57, 93 and 73 had helped Ding build up a 5-2 to lead but then the nerves set in and Cao came back to 5-5 before a 63 finally sealed the deal for Ding.
There were some big shocks on the opening day though with Stephen Maguire, Shaun Murphy and defending champion Judd Trump all crashing out.
Alan McManus got the better of Trump in another 6-5 thriller; David Gilbert edged out Murphy 6-4 for; while Maguire was punished for an off-colour performance as he was defeated 6-3 by Kyren Wilson.
Big names like Mark Selby, Mark Williams and Neil Robertson all safely moved on though, while Barry Hawkins beat Jimmy White 6-2 in battle between two former world championship finalists.

Results

Rod Lawler 6-3 Aditya Mehta

Ding Junhui 6-5 Cao Yupeng

Fergal O'Brien 6-4 Ben Woollaston

Kyren Wilson 6-3 Stephen Maguire

Marco Fu 6-2 Adam Duffy

Xiao Guodong 6-2 Alfie Burden

Alan McManus 6-5 Judd Trump

Peter Lines 6-3 Mark King

Neil Robertson 6-4 Alex Davies

Barry Hawkins 6-2 Jimmy White

Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 6-1 Zhang Anda

Zhao Xintong 6-2 Craig Steadman

James Wattana 6-5 Gary Wilson

David Gilbert 6-4 Shaun Murphy

Mark J Williams 6-2 Paul S Davison

Peter Ebdon 6-2 Jack Lisowski

Ryan Day 6-4 Mike Dunn

Mark Selby 6-0 Jamie Burnett

Joe Perry 6-5 Jamie Jones

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - O'Sullivan collapses from 1/250 shot to defeat in China

Ronnie O'Sullivan suffered a meltdown at the International Championship in Chengdu as he lost 6-4 to Liang Wenbo in the second round.
The Rocket was in sensational form in the early stages of the match with breaks of 120 and 121 helping him race to a 3-0 lead.
At that stage, he was considered 1/250 with some bookmakers in-running and looked even closer to victory when 4-1 up.
However, he would fail to win another a frame as mistakes started to creep into his game while a more aggressive Liang starting potting more balls, while benefiting from some lucky breaks, to storm to victory.
The £625,000 prize pool makes the International Championship the most lucrative event in Asia but O'Sullivan will receive just £7,000 for crashing out in the second round.
Elsewhere, home hero Ding Junhui had an easier time of things than in the first round as he beat James Wattana 6-3 to keep up his bid for a third successive ranking event title.
Two-time world champion Mark Williams crashed out though as he was defeated 6-2 by Norway Kurt Maflin.
World number one Neil Robertson had no such problems though as he enjoyed a 6-1 win over Thepchaiya Un-Nooh while Mark Selby ground out a 6-4 win over Peter Lines.

Results

Peter Ebdon 6-5 Mark Joyce

Mark Selby 6-4 Peter Lines

Liang Wenbo 6-4 Ronnie O'Sulivan

Stuart Bingham 6-4 Martin Gould

Fergal O'Brien 6-4 Rod Lawler

Zhao Xintong 6-1 Barry Hawkins

Neil Robertson 6-1 Thepchaiya Un-Nooh

Ryan Day 6-4 Alan McManus

Marco Fu 6-4 Xiao Guodong

Ding Junhui 6-3 James Wattana

Graeme Dott 6-1 Kyren Wilson

Kurt Maflin 6-2 Mark Williams

Mark Davies 6-3 Stuart Carrington

Mark Allen 6-4 Dave Harold

Joe Perry 6-3 David Gilbert

Matthew Stevens 6-2 John Higgins

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - Robertson ousted by Ebdon in China thriller

World number one Neil Robertson lost a narrow encounter with Peter Ebdon, who moved into the quarter-finals of the International Championship in Chengdu.
It looked like Robertson was set for a famous comeback after coming from 5-3 down to level the clash, but Ebdon kept his nerve in a tight final frame to claim a 6-5 victory.
Ebdon will face Ding Junhui for a place in the last four after the Chinese hope eased past Matthew Stevens 6-1.
"I tried to play more quickly today and I've already had a few messages from people back in the UK saying I look better when I'm getting on with it,” Ebdon told the World Snooker website.
“I felt as if I was competing. Neither of us played at our best, but that made it exciting for the fans. I enjoyed it and I'm delighted to win.”
Robertson, the beaten finalist last year, paid tribute to Ebdon, although expressed his disappointment and not being able to contest the latter stages of the ranking tournament.
"Peter is one of the all-time greats and he gives a pint of blood for every shot. He's a very tough opponent and I'm proud of the way I came back, pretty much anyone else on the tour would have lost 6-3. From 3-1 to 5-3, the frames were going for 30 minutes even when he was making big breaks. It makes it very difficult to get any rhythm going.
"I guess it's a shame I didn't get to play Ding in the quarter-finals as we're the best two players in the world at the moment. If Peter plays Ding and plays like he did today I think he will probably win. Ding will have to be very patient and maintain a good temperament."
In other third-round matches, Hong Kong’s Marco Fu ended the run of local wild-card Zhao Xintong with a 6-2 win, while Graeme Dott beat Kurt Maflin 6-5 in another exciting encounter.
Joe Perry also went through to the last eight after beating Mark Allen 6-4.

Third-round results:

Ryan Day 6-3 Fergal O’Brien

Joe Perry 6-4 Mark Allen

Marco Fu 6-2 Zhao Xintong

Mark Selby 6-1 Stuart Bingham

Peter Ebdon 6-5 Neil Robertson

Graeme Dott 6-5 Kurt Maflin

Liang Wenbo 6-1 Mark Davis

Quarter-final draw:

Ryan Day v Steve Perry

Marco Fu v Mark Selby

Peter Ebdon v Ding Junhui

Graeme Dott v Liang Wenbo

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - Ding victory sets up Dott semi-final

China’s Ding Junhui emerged victorious from a lengthy match with Peter Ebdon to set up a semi-final with Graeme Dott at the International Championship and continue his bid for a third ranking crown in a row.
Ding eventually secured a 6-3 victory after four hours and 33 minutes to move closer to becoming the first player to claim a hat-trick of ranking title since Stephen Hendry in 1990.
Breaks of 86 and 76 helped him establish an early lead before the players shared the third and fourth frames to leave the world number four 3-1 ahead.
Further scores of 82 and 83 put him on the verge of victory and although Ebdon launched a brief fightback, Ding sealed the win with a 62 in the final frame.
"I played well today and didn't lose my rhythm," said Ding, as reported by World Snooker. "I think today's match was the best one in recent years, playing Peter in competition.
“He showed his serious match play and wasn't as slow as before. I was feeling ok and kept my normal rhythm, and I was able to make good breaks when I had chances.
“Overall I'm pleased with my performance. Sometimes you can lose your rhythm and it's difficult stay in form when facing different types of players.”
Dott progressed with a 6-3 win over Liang Wenbo, a win which included breaks of 97 and 91.
"I played very well, a solid match," said Dott. "Liang didn't play as well as he can and I put him under pressure.
"Ding is the best player in the world at the moment so to play him in China will be fantastic, it will be a great occasion. I have beaten him in China before so I know I can do it. I've got a bit of confidence and I'm gradually getting better."

Quarter-final results

Joe Perry 6-1 Ryan Day

Marco Fu 6-5 Mark Selby

Peter Ebdon 3-6 Ding Junhui

Graeme Dott 6-3 Liang Wenbo

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - Ding halts Dott comeback to reach Chengdu final

Ding Jinhui fended off a Graeme Dott comeback to set up a final clash with Marco Fu at the International Championship in Chengdu.
The world number four, who is seeking to become the first player to win a hat-trick of ranking titles since Stephen Hendry in 1990, came through a tight encounter 9-7.
Ding looked to be on course for a comfortable victory at 7-3 until Dott reeled off three straight frames to threaten an upset.
But Ding notched a 121 break in the 16th to halt the Scot’s fight back before sealing victory with an impressive 63 clearance.
"Graeme played great safety from 7-3 down," said Ding to World Snooker. "The last few frames were difficult because Graeme raised his game and was playing at a quick pace. I could feel his confidence out there.
"In the last frame, he didn't play the perfect safety so left me a long pot, and it was lucky for me to get that chance when I was more than 50 points behind. I knew it was my last chance so I held myself together to win the match with a solid break."

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - Ding wins third title on the bounce

Ding Junhui edged Macro Fu 10-9 in an enthralling final at the International Championship to become the first player to win three consecutive ranking titles since Stephen Hendry in 1990.
Five centuries helped Ding build a 6-4 lead before Fu fought back in the second session, taking the lead on three occasions and falling just short of a 147 break.
Fu stood a frame away from victory at 9-8 but Ding responded with a 58 to draw level and sealed the title with a 91 in the decider.

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - Allen wins second straight European title

Mark Allen won his second consecutive European Tour event by beating Judd Trump 4-1 in the final of the Kay Suzanne Memorial Cup at the South West Snooker Academy in Gloucester.
Northern Ireland's 27-year-old Allen, who won the Ruhr Open last month, became the first player to win back-to-back events in the same season since the Players Tour Championship series was introduced in 2010.
He took the opening frame with a 62 clearance, before Trump levelled with a break of 128. Allen took a scrappy third then made three scoring visits in the next for 3-1. And a run of 53 in frame five clinched the £20,000 top prize as well as 2,000 ranking points.
"I played very solid snooker over the last couple of days," said Allen. "I had one tight match in the last 32 against Gary Wilson, which I won 4-3, but apart from that I won most of my matches quite comfortably. It's nice to have won two titles already this season as not many other players have done that."
Allen is now looking forward to two major events later this month - the 888casino Champion of Champions in Coventry followed by the UK Championship in York. "My target now is to win a big title and I'm full of confidence," he said. "I'm just happy to be playing well because I was struggling earlier in the season."
In the semi-finals, Trump edged out Welshman Jamie Jones 4-3 while Allen saw off Scotland's Graeme Dott 4-2.
The tournament is named in memory of Kay Suzanne, sister of SWSA owner Paul Mount, and players wore pink shirts to raise awareness of breast cancer. Allen added: "Paul and his family have worked hard on this event and it was great to see the fans and players supporting it so well."
The European Tour comprises eight events, with the top 24 on the final Order of Merit to qualify for the Grand Finals next March, to be joined by eight more players from the Asian Tour Order of Merit. The next event is the Antwerp Open in Belgium from November 14 to 17.

Results

Last 16

Anthony Hamilton 3-4 Judd Trump

Chris Wakelin 4-2 Michael Holt

Michael wasley 3-4 Jamie Jones

Ian Burns 4-1 David Morris

Sam Baird 4-2 Ali Carter

Barry Pinches 2-4 Graeme Dott

Mark Allen 4-1 Joel Walker

Kurt Maflin 1-4 Neil Robertson

Quarter-finals

Trump 4-2 Wakelin

Jones 4-2 Burns

Baird 1-4 Dott

Allen 4-2 Robertson

Semi-finals

Trump 4-3 Jones

Dott 2-4 Allen

Final

Trump 1-4 Allen

 

[Smallville22]

Cricket - India cruise to ODI victory

Half centuries from Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli helped India to a comfortable six-wicket win over West Indies in the first one-day international in Kochi.
India, set 212 to win, suffered an early set back when Shikhar Dhawan was dismissed for just five but Sharma (72 from 81 balls) and Kohli (86 from 84 balls) quickly got the hosts back on track.
And by the time the pair were dismissed, it was too late for West Indies to launch a fightback as Yuvraj Singh (16 no) and MS Dhoni (13 no) quickly added the remaining runs to seal a convincing win with the loss of only four wickets.
West Indies opener Chris Gayle was stretchered off with a leg injury to leave his participation in the three-match series in doubt.
“I was timing it very well and once I gained the confidence, I just carried on,” said man of the match Kohli.
“I tried to keep the bat close to the body and once you get into good positions even if the ball keeps low you can handle it.”
India captain Dhoni added: “I think it's a fantastic performance and it could have been ever better if one of our batsmen had got a hundred.”
Darren Bravo made 59 for West Indies in their innings as Ravindra Jadeja and Suresh Raina took three wickets each.

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - Selby hits back to sink O'Sullivan

Mark Selby came from 3-1 down to beat Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-3 in a dramatic final at the Antwerp Open European Tour event in Belgium.
A cool clearance in the deciding frame gave Selby his first title of the season and the 25,000 Euro top prize. The world number two from Leicester looks to be coming into form at the right time with the defence of his williamhill.com UK Championship title to start later this month.
Watched by an enthusiastic crowd of 1,200 at the Lotto Arena, O’Sullivan won the opening frame with a break of 74. The second came down to the colours and Selby took it with a long pot on the blue.
O’Sullivan regained the lead with a run of 54, then stole frame four with a fine clearance from the penultimate red to go 3-1 ahead. Selby dominated the next with 52 and 61, then made a superb 126 for 3-3.
World Champion O'Sullivan had the first clear chance in the decider but surprisingly missed a black off its spot at 36-0. That proved his last shot as Selby's 77 gave him the title.
"Any time you play Ronnie you have to be on your game," said Selby. "From 3-1 down I played really well. I never give up but I didn't expect to get another chance in the decider."
O'Sullivan said: "I never like losing but it is part of sport. There are a lot more tournaments coming up and I hope I'll get a victory soon. I'm just enjoying being involved in big games and competing against top players."
The European Tour comprises eight events, with the top 24 on the final Order of Merit to qualify for the Grand Finals next March, to be joined by eight more players from the Asian Tour Order of Merit. The next event is the Gdynia Open in Poland from February 6 to 9.

Results

Last 16

Jack Lisowski 4-3 Ryan Day

Mark Williams 2-4 Aditya Mehta

Tony Drago 1-4 Mark Selby

Ding Junhui 4-2 Marco Fu

Joel Walker 4-1 Kurt Maflin

Stuart Bingham 3-4 Ronnie O’Sullivan

Sam Baird 1-4 Ben Woollaston

Joe Perry 4-1 Mark Allen

Quarter-finals

Perry 0-4 O’Sullivan

Woollaston 4-3 Walker

Selby 4-1 Ding

Mehta 0-4 Lisowski

Semi-finals

Lisowski 2-4 Selby

Woollaston 2-4 O’Sullivan

Final

Selby 4-3 O’Sullivan

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - Higgins backs top three for UK Championship success

John Higgins thinks Ronnie O’Sullivan, Ding Junhui and Neil Robertson will be the men to beat at the UK Championship next week.
The £700,000 tournament at the York Barbican runs from November 26 to December 8, with all 128 players starting in the same round for the first time.
Higgins, a three-times UK and four-times World Champion, feels the aforementioned trio are well ahead of the competition.
"Ronnie O’Sullivan is hard to gauge because he doesn’t play that many tournaments, but in the big events like this he is always one of the favourites," said Higgins.
"Neil Robertson is world number one by a distance and the rankings don’t lie. And Ding Junhui is just in fantastic form at the moment. He has matured a lot as a person and a player in recent months.
"He is the complete package on the table and he has unbelievable talent.”
Former world number one Higgins has made a strong start to the season, winning a European Tour event in Bulgaria in June and reaching the final of the Wuxi Classic, where he lost to Robertson.
Since that run he has not been past the last 16 in any event, with the Scot pointing to some technical changes he has made.
"I have been faffing about with technique this season and trying different cues," he said. "Now I’m trying to get back to basics and it feels better.
"Throughout my career, even when I was winning a lot of titles, I’ve always had the feeling that the grass would be greener if I could improve my technique or my cue.
"I know my faults and I usually know how to correct them. But there have been times during tournaments when I’ve changed something and it hasn’t worked and then I don’t know how to fix it, which is a horrible feeling.
"The UK Championship is a huge tournament and I would love to do well in York this year. It’s good to have a new format with everyone starting in the same round. You face new opponents and it gives a chance for more players to compete at the venue and get experience playing on TV."

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - Selby battles to victory over Maguire

Mark Selby advanced into the semi-finals of the Champions of Champions tournament by beating Stephen Maguire 6-3.
Selby's victory saw him through as the first group winner and he will now face the victor of tomorrow's group 3 fixtures - contested by Judd Trump, Marco Fu, Rickey Walden and Stuart Bingham.
The game was tightly contested, with players trading frames as the score stayed level until Selby broke away in the seventh.
An impressive break in the eighth frame allowed the 30-year-old some breathing room and it was plain sailing from there as he ran out the winner by six frames to three.

 

[Smallville22]

Snooker - Bingham advances through to semi-finals

Stuart Bingham will play Mark Selby in the semi-finals of the Champion of Champions tournament after beating Ricky Walden and then Judd Trump.
Bingham put on a solid performance, making very few errors throughout his evening and taking full advantage of his opportunities when on the balls.
Trump, who had earlier dispatched Marco Fu, was disappointing and made far too many errors when on the table – a missed black off the spot when a winning break looked likely topping off a miserable night.
Essex potter Bingham then moved into a 4-2 lead when the score really should have been 3-3. Trump’s poor form continued and he was unable to stop his opponent going on to take a 6-2 win.
“I played pretty well. In the first frames Judd missed I think three balls and I punished him hard to go 3-0 up,” Bingham said.
“He had a little fight back to go 3-2 and he maybe should have gone 3-3 but missed a black off the spot and let me in.
“I made a good clearance from there to go 4-2 and then I played pretty solidly to get over the line. I had four breaks over 60 and a couple of 40s so I’m scoring well and I punished him when he did miss.
“When it got to 3-2 and he had a chance for 3-3 you start looking at the way the frames and a few shots start going against you. At 3-1 I didn’t feel I was playing great and I didn’t really need to pot a ball to get in. I made a good break to go to 5-2 and was happy to get over the line.
“The semi-final will be tough. Mark has just won Antwerp so he will be full of confidence and he played solidly yesterday. It will be a tough game and I need to be at my best to have a chance.”

 

[Smallville22]

Dominican Republic subdue Thailand in opening match

Nagoya, Japan, November 12, 2013 - Led by Bethania De La Cruz's match-high 25 points, the Dominican Republic defeated Thailand 25-23, 25-21, 25-23 in the opening match of the FIVB Women's Grand Champions Cup on Tuesday.
Prisilla Rivera added 15 points while Annerys Vargas chipped in with 10 points in the winning cause. Onuma Sittirak finished with 20 points as the leading scorer for Thailand.
The winners held a huge 12-3 advantage in the blocking category and also were better 6-2 in the serving aces charts. De la Cruz had five blocks and four aces among her 25 points while Vargas contributed 4 blocks.
After a sluggish start in the first set, the Dominicans came alive with an 11-3 run and retained the momentum for the remainder of the match. The Dominican Republic displayed good teamwork in the victory, with slick passing and some very good defense.
A nice dink by Onuma gave Thailand an early 3-2 lead in the opening set. A two-hand punch return by Brenda Castillo moved the Dominicans ahead 5-4. After her huge spike was saved, Prisilla Rivera responded with a dink for the Dominican Republic to cut their deficit to 7-6. Thailand led 8-6 at the first technical timeout.
Gina Mambru sent a serve long to put Thailand on top 10-9. There were several extended rallies as the match remained close. With Thailand in front 15-12, the Dominicans called a timeout. A well placed spike by Kanthong Malika sent Thailand into the second TTO with a 16-12 edge. Onuma's spike made it 20-14 and the Dominican Republic took a timeout.
A spike by Thinkaow Pleumjit moved the Thais within three points of the set at 22-17.De La Cruz guided a soft return to pull the Dominicans within 22-19. A great save by libero Brenda Castillo enabled the Dominicans to keep the play going and the equalized at 22-22. De La Cruz's soaring spike moved the Dominican Republic ahead 23-22. Thailand save one set point on a spike by Onuma for 24-23. Rivera's spike gave the Caribbeans the set at 25-23. De La Cruz had eight points in the set. Onuma had five.
The Thais moved out to a 6-4 lead in the second set. Onuma's spike evened the score at 7-7, before the Dominicans took an 8-7 lead into the first TTO on a spike by Rivera. Another Onuma spike made it 11-11. The Dominicans moved ahead 14-13 on an ace by De La Cruz. A quick spike by Pleumjit knotted it 15-15 and the Thais were up 16-15 at the second TTO. With the Dominican Republic ahead 20-19, Thailand called a timeout. A spike by Nuekjankg Thatdao pulled Thailand within a point at 21-20. De La Cruz continued her aerial assault with another spike and the Dominicans were within two points of the set at 23-20. A service error by Onuma gave the Dominican Republic the set at 25-21. De La Cruz had 13 points in the set.
A quick spike by Annerys Vargas spotted the Dominicans to a 4-1 lead in the third set. Thailand was up 8-7 at the first TTO in the third set as they looked to stay in the match. A spike just inside the sideline by Wilavan Apinyapong put Thailand up 11-8. A missed spike by Gina Mambru made it 13-8 for Thailand and the Dominican Republic called a timeout. The Dominicans responded with three straight points to make it 13-11 and the Thais took a timeout of their own. A nice dink by Wilavan took the score to 14-12. Pleumjit's spike sent the Thais into the second TTO with a 16-14 advantage. A service ace by Annerys Vargas tied it at 16-16. An Onuma spike made it 20-18 fpr Thailand. A net infraction by Thailand evened it at 20-20. De La Cruz moved the Dominicans in front 21-20 with another soaring spike. Mambru's spike put the Dominican Republic within two points of the match at 23-22. The Dominicans closed it out on a nice block.