Masters Snooker Daily Tips: Gilbert to continue his dream debut

Paul Krishnamurty
16 January 2020

David Gilbert produced an outstanding debut performance at Ally Pally

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Previewing both of Friday's quarter-finals, Paul Krishnamurty is backing David Gilbert to maintain his outstanding form...

"Wilson v Bingham could very well go to a decider...it could be worth laying the front-runner once going below 1.42/5 as a trade."

Over 9.5 Frames in Wilson/Bingham 4u @ 11/10

The shortest pre-tournament outright odds about any of the quarter-finalists in action on Friday was 21.020/1. One of them is guaranteed to reach the final.

Over the long-term, there really isn't much to choose between any of them. In terms of their first round performances though, one man stands out.

Gilbert is this week's star to date

For my money, David Gilbert produced the best snooker of anybody yet in thrashing Mark Allen. Any doubts about him handling the Ally Pally atmosphere on debut were immediately swept away.

Of course that was just one match on one day and the market has reacted, making him clear favourite at 1.758/11 in what would normally be an even match.

Stephen Maguire reached the UK final and had an amazing win of his own in the previous round, from 5-1 down against Neil Robertson. The Scot leads their head-to-head 3-1 although it doesn't reflect a fair guide, as their last meeting was in 2015, before Gilbert's vast improvement.

I prefer Gilbert. If he maintains that level of form, he'll blow away most opponents. Try 6/5 about him winning by more than one frame.

Wilson and Bingham could need a decider

Strong conclusions cannot be formed about either Kyren Wilson or Stuart Bingham on the basis of the previous round. Both were gifted chance after chance by struggling opponents and weren't really tested.

This looks a very tight game so Kyren's 4-1 career head-to-head supremacy comes as a surprise. I'm not wholly convinced he's at his best though, and have a sneaky feeling that Bingham is about to start playing really well.

This could very well go to a decider. Try Over 9.5 Frames at 11/10 as a pre-match bet and, in-play, it could be worth laying the front-runner once going below 1.42/5 as a trade.

Follow Paul on Twitter @paulmotty