Steve Davis dug deep to only trail Mark King 5-4 at the halfway mark and as predicted this is an intriguing, but painfully slow match, with play finishing at 11.30pm. King is still as low as 2-9 in places and I think that is harsh on Davis, who could resemble a decent punt at 3-1 with Ladbrokes if he continues to keep pace with his fellow Romford cueman.
They are back on again in the 7pm slot and the Crucible clientele could be in for another late night – indeed, there should bet bets taken on which session finishes first, this one or the following tie..
In a repeat of the 2006 final, PETER EBDON tackles qualifier Graeme Dott. 'Pocket Dynamo' Dott bagged the crown that year with a highest break of 68 in one of the least memorable finals of recent times and he is 13-10 with Boylesports to come out on top again.
It hasn't been an especially decent campaign for both players, but Ebdon showed some spark of life at the recent China Open in beating Judd Trump and Neil Robertson before meeting a rampant Ding Junhui, and for that reason I am backing him to win this re-match at a general 4-6, although the even money with Stan James, Betfred and Ladbrokes for him to win giving Dott a frame and a half start looks the better bet.
I have never been convinced by RYAN DAY'S ability despite his high ranking in the sport, but he should have enough about him to overcome Englishman Mark Davis when they begin their first round at the Crucible on Tuesday morning.
The Welshman discovered a modicum of form at the Welsh Open, reaching the quarter-final, but a 5-0 whitewash by Stephen Hendry in the second round of the China Open brought him back crashing down to earth and showed that everything is still not rosy in the Day garden.
Davis beat an out-of-sorts Marco Fu in the Grand Prix, but that is the only seeded player he has got the better of this season in what has been an average campaign for him and although I think he may push Day all the way, the Welshman should just have the edge at 4-11 with Skybet, totesport and Ladbrokes. Indeed it may be so close that the 5-6 with sportingbet for Davis to win on the handicap with a +3.5 start may prove profitable.
Ronnie O'Sullivan made light work of Liang Wenbo in their first session and is now just 1-100 to see the job out, needing just three frames to wrap up the match at 7-2 up.
NEIL ROBERTSON should canter to victory at 1-6 over Fergal O'Brien when he gets his campaign underway in the morning – a 10-2 win is 14-1 with extrabet – while my pre-tournament choice DING JUNHUI should likewise dispose of Stuart Pettman – not Martin Gould if anyone was watching on the BBC red button last night and saw the trailer for the morning's matches – with minimal fuss and he is 11-1 with extrabet to win 10-2 and 22-1 to win 10-1.
