Free snooker betting tips: John Higgins and Barry Hawkins take centre stage at the Welsh Open
Our snooker expert Richard Mann has cast his eye over the semi-final action at the Welsh and think John Higgins could be made to work hard in his match.
Recommended bets: Welsh Open, semi-finals
2pts win Gary Wilson to beat John Higgins (+2.5) at 11/8
John Higgins is now only two wins away from a record-breaking fifth Welsh Open title following his brilliant 5-1 defeat of Ronnie O'Sullivan in Cardiff last night.
Higgins, 42, turned in a vintage display to down the Rocket, compiling breaks of 113, 57, 60 and 101, and will now play Gary Wilson for a place in tomorrow's final.
Higgins is 1-5 with Sky Bet to progress but Wilson has enjoyed a fine week himself and might prove a tougher opponent than many expect.
Wilson has produced some terrific snooker on his way to the semi-finals, numbering Masters Champion Mark Allen amongst his victims, and barely had to break sweat to beat Yu Delu in his quarter-final match.
He made three centuries in that game and his heavy-scoring saw him defeat Higgins in the Northern Ireland Open last year.
He is fancied to push Higgins close again and is taken to cover the handicap (+2.5) at 11/8.
In the earlier semi-final, Barry Hawkins takes on Noppon Saengkham.
Hawkins has been back to something like his best this week and claimed a very good win against the highly touted Yan Bingtao in their quarter-final.
A close encounter appeared in store when Hawkins levelled the scores at 1-1 but the left-hander proved dominant thereafter and made two big hundreds as he reeled off four frames in a row.
He is 3/10 to make it past the little-known Saengkham but the latter is here on merit and should at least be competitive, for all we expect Hawkins to prove too strong.
Posted at 1130 GMT on 03/03/18.
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