Ronnie O'Sullivan is the headline selection at next week's European Masters – read Richard Mann's outright preview here.
Snooker betting tips: European Masters
2pts Ronnie O'Sullivan to win the European Masters at 5/1 (General)
0.5pts e.w. Graeme Dott to win the European Masters at 80/1 (bet365, William Hill 1/2 1,2)
RONNIE O'SULLIVAN has been making the headlines for non-snooker reasons in the last few days but, as always, the six-time world champion is at his most dangerous when a wounded animal and he can win his second title of the season at the European Masters next week.
O’Sullivan’s split from long-time fiancée Laila Rouass was announced on Wednesday and while ordinarily, personal issues such as this would generally coincide with a downturn in a player’s form, O’Sullivan has so often been at his best when faced with adversity and asked to defy the odds.
In 2013 O’Sullivan won his fifth world title despite not having played a competitive match all season, while he famously triumphed at the Masters four years earlier with a new cue he used for the first time only an hour before his opening match.
Just before Christmas, O’Sullivan came from 7-5 behind to beat Neil Robertson in the final of the World Grand Prix, breaking a run of five final defeats in a row. Not long prior to that victory, arch rival Judd Trump had suggested that O’Sullivan 'couldn’t win an event to save his life'.
O’Sullivan has generally produced on the table when having something to prove, or when snooker can provide an escape from life’s trials and tribulations, and that is one of a few reasons why I’m expecting a bold show from him at the European Masters.
In-form O'Sullivan in the mix again
Another reason – and probably the fundamental one – is the overall body of O'Sullivan's form, this season and in the previous campaign.
While O’Sullivan might have suffered a rare blank last term, he remained remarkably consistent and almost impossible to beat until the latter stages of tournaments. Even when not at his sparkling best, his all-round game remains too much for most players on the tour and evidence of that is the fact that he has made four quarter-finals, two semi-finals and won one an event already this season. Perhaps he isn’t wowing quite as often as he used to, but O'Sullivan is still proving very hard to beat. That he currently sits fourth on the 1 Year Ranking List is testament to that.
Furthermore, O’Sullivan has also demonstrated an ability to still be able to take down the best in big matches. He is one of the few men who has been able to stop the irresistible Robertson when he has been playing well, while he turned his poor recent head-to-head record with Trump on its head with a dazzling display at the Players Championship only a matter of days ago. O’Sullivan was outstanding in that match, playing as well as he has for some time.
He didn’t fire in the same way when defeated by Robertson in the next round, but in losing to the Australian twice in big events since the turn of the year, he hasn’t had things easy and as such, possibly comes into this one slightly underestimated.
I don’t mind his draw, either, with a potential meeting with John Higgins in the last eight expected to prove his biggest obstacle to him progressing to the weekend. Like Trump, Higgins has generally got the better of O’Sullivan more recently, but The Rocket has looked very sharp from the UK Championship onwards, whereas Higgins, the Championship League apart, hasn’t been quite as strong as when reaching four finals earlier in this campaign.
Trump and Selby back for more but doubts remain
Trump is another who I harbour concerns about, given he has rarely been the same player this term as when winning 11 titles in the previous two seasons. He might not be far away, and he was brilliant when winning the Champion of Champions not so long ago, but that same level of consistency just isn’t there right now and I’d find it hard to back him with confidence.
As such, O’Sullivan rates the clear pick from the bottom half of the draw and is worth a bet at 5/1.
Should he come through his held over match with Matthew Selt, defending champion Mark Selby will head the top half of the draw, but he hasn’t played well enough of late to suggest he should be supported to go back-to-back.
By contrast the obvious form horse is the aforementioned Robertson, winner of the English Open, Masters and Players Championship in recent months. The Australian is at the peak of his powers right now and has proven time and time again to be almost unstoppable when on a hot streak.
Still, with events like the Welsh Open and Tour Championship coming up before the World Championship, you have to wonder where this event lies on his list of priorities. We’re guessing a little bit here, but at the prices, I’m happy to swerve him on this occasion.
Dott worth a bet at big prices
Instead, I’m going to throw a few quid at former world champion GRAEME DOTT who has endured a quiet season by his own high standards, in part due to the loss of the Chinese events from the calendar.
That said, Dott looked in good touch at the Championship League recently, beating Zhao Xintong 3-1 on one occasion, and the Scot will no doubt view a tournament such as this as a chance to rescue his season and earn him some much-needed ranking points.
With the likes of Selby, Zhou Yuelong and Luca Brecel all housed in the first quarter, Dott clearly has his work cut out, but all of that aforementioned trio have questions to answer on recent form and our man certainly has the game and experience to shake up the top half of the draw.
At 80/1 outright and with 12s to win the quarter there for those less speculative, I think Dott might be worth a small investment, but the bulk of the stake is concentrated on O’Sullivan – a man who has always been at his most dangerous when the chips are down and he needs his snooker to do the talking. I'm betting on him doing just that next week.
Posted at 1530 GMT on 19/02/22
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