Betfred World Championship predictions, snooker betting tips and winner odds

Snooker tips, best bets and player analysis for the Betfred World Championship at Sheffield's Crucible Theatre.

Where to watch

BBC & Eurosport, from 10am Saturday

Best bets

John Higgins to win title
2pts each-way 10-1 Betfred

Jamie Jones to win first quarter
1pt 33-1 Coral, Ladbrokes

Preview

It's back to the regular April and May slot for the Betfred World Championship after last year's tournament was delayed until July and August due to the initial pandemic lockdown and there are hopes that this year's Crucible Theatre final could host a capacity crowd.

World number one Judd Trump, who is streets clear of the chasing pack after a hugely successful season, is the favourite and Ronnie O'Sullivan is defending his title in the 17-day marathon which starts on Saturday morning.

However, the Rocket, who is hoping to draw level with Stephen Hendry on seven world titles, may struggle this year to reproduce the scintillating quality that saw him go all the way last August. And while Trump at his peak would definitely be in with a chance of making it two wins in three years, the Ace in the Pack doesn't go into the tournament in tip-top fettle.

The outright betting suggests Neil Robertson, Mark Selby and John Higgins are the chief threats to Trump or O'Sullivan taking the title and the oddsmakers are particularly respectful of the chances of UK and Tour Championship hero Robertson and Players Championship winner Higgins shining in Sheffield.

Humphries' top tip

John Higgins to win title 10-1

Higgins has not been single-figure odds for the Crucible for years, but that was the case immediately after his 10-3 Players Championship final victory over O'Sullivan in February.

But while the result was obviously important – and O'Sullivan, who was none too keen to play Higgins in the final, knew what was coming his way beforehand – the most important fact was that the Scot had tweaked his cue action prior to that tournament.

Many players alter or modify this and that, but when the Rolls-Royce of the baize, as O'Sullivan once referred to Higgins, acts on advice that his game could be improved by getting his cue tip closer to the cueball before playing a shot, punters simply have to sit up and listen.

We're talking about a player who hardly ever missed a pot during practice sessions up to and including the start of 2021, so for Higgins to heed the recommendation and for it to work, after weeks of amending his usual routine, the result could well be, and has already been, decisive.

Higgins won't have been too bothered by his subsequent loss to O'Sullivan in the Tour Championship last month. The Wizard of Wishaw may actually have been buoyed by that 10-8 defeat, knowing that on another day his opponent was there for the taking.

And that may be the case at the Crucible, where the pair could clash in the semi-finals. With a possible second-round clash against Anthony McGill and quarter-final rumble against Ding Junhui, O'Sullivan may not even make it to the last four anyway.

But while the Rocket's performance to reel in and pip Selby 17-16 in their semi-final outing in Sheffield last August was quite possibly the best-ever seen given the importance of the occasion, O'Sullivan would be unlikely to reproduce a similar run against Higgins should it be required.

Selby didn't do much wrong in the closing stages of that match, but if Higgins was to take a grip in the same circumstances, it's doubtful that O'Sullivan would possess the resolve or belief to re-enact the special scene.

Higgins' first clash with a seed would come against Mark Williams, who made the semis of the Welsh Open in February and the final of the latest Championship League bash at the start of this month.

Williams is playing well and defeated Higgins 18-16 in the 2018 Crucible title match. But while the Welshman's need to nail a third world crown was possibly greater at the time, Higgins finds himself trailing O'Sullivan by two in the world title stakes and may never get a better chance to add to his haul playing as well as he has been in recent months.

In the quarter-finals Higgins could meet either three-time champion Selby or Mark Allen. Neither opponent would be easy to defeat, but if Higgins was to reproduce the level that took him to the Players Championship title he ought to have the measure of either player.

Next best bet

Jamie Jones to win first quarter 33-1

Jones is well and truly back and loving his day job again after a ban and the Welsh Warrior looks a qualifier to avoid. If any of the three-figure qualifiers looks capable of springing a title surprise, it's him.

Pipped 13-11 by Ali Carter in the 2012 quarter-finals, Jones has the right pedigree for another decent Sheffield run. He compiled breaks of 138, 136, 135, 134, 132, 127, 101 on his first competitive visit to the Crucible and that tells you he has the temperament required.

Jones' only previous encounter with first-round opponent Stephen Maguire, in Australia in 2014, ended in a 5-0 defeat for the Glaswegian so there has to be hope that the younger player can add to his positive record in the pair's personal series.

Should Jones start well, he may meet Ding Junhui in the last 16 and while there's an opportunity for Ding to prosper at the Crucible in the coming days, the Neath cueman defeated the Chinese number one 6-2 in the 2016 UK Championship so there is hope for the qualifier.

And with O'Sullivan not looking a certainty to go deep in this year's tournament, it would not be a surprise to see Jones end up facing either 16th seed Anthony McGill or fellow qualifier Ricky Walden for a place in the single-table set-up.

Players to note

Judd Trump
The 2019 world champion will have a lot less pressure on his shoulders in Sheffield this year than last, when he was attempting to become the first player to successfully defend a maiden Crucible crown, and the world number one and ante-post favourite could have a major say in deciding the course of the trophy even though his game has not been in peak condition in recent weeks.

Neil Robertson
One world title, captured in 2010, is small reward for a talent as abundant as Robertson's. Robertson is in the opposite half of the draw from golden greats O'Sullivan and Higgins, but if he turns it on he could, along with Trump, be one of the biggest dangers to Higgins landing a fifth world title.

Ding Junhui
Ding has been bubbling under for quite some time now, but if O'Sullivan was to take an early bath, he could be the one to profit. He was edged out 6-5 by the Rocket in the Players Championship and could again pose problems for O'Sullivan should they clash in Sheffield.

Anthony McGill
Last year's losing semi-finalist faces a potentially tough opener against in-form qualifier Ricky Walden, but the Scot will run into O'Sullivan if both seeds win their openers and McGill could prosper against the Rocket if the champion is not in the right mood.

Barry Hawkins
The Hawk played some of his best snooker for a long time when losing 6-4 to O'Sullivan in the Players Championship and he has also produced some fine performances in Sheffield, most notably when finishing runner-up to the Rocket in a high-class encounter in 2013. A tough draw, however, could pit him against last year's losing finalist Kyren Wilson and Robertson.

Ali Carter
The Captain, runner-up to O'Sullivan in 2008 and 2012, is showing signs of getting down to the job in hand again and there still could be a world title in him. He'd surely want to avoid running into the Rocket again, however.

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