World Snooker Bet of the Day: Fu and Allen can upset the odds

Paul Krishnamurty
26 April 2014

Marco Fu caught the eye with an impressive first round victory

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The final two second round matches commence this morning, with former champions Shaun Murphy and Neil Robertson in action. Paul Krishnamurty believes both are vulnerable to an upset...

"One man who looked at the peak of his powers was Marco Fu. His match against Martin Gould was a high quality affair and if the Hong Kong man can maintain that level of form, he's a frontline candidate for the title."

It has been widely remarked that very few seeds brought anything like their best to the first round, but one man who looked at the peak of his powers was Marco Fu. His match against Martin Gould was a high quality affair and if the Hong Kong man can maintain that level of form, he's a frontline candidate for the title.

The big problem for Fu backers is the draw, with Ronnie O'Sullivan waiting if he can negotiate the not insignificant figure of Shaun Murphy. The Magician has title claims of his own and was in fine form only last month when winning the World Open. He was far from his fluent best when scraping past Jamie Cope in the first round, though, and has been inconsistent throughout most of the season.

There is also a suspicion that Murphy's power potting game is not ideal for the fast table conditions. His forte is potting great balls to recover lost position, but similar types like Judd Trump and Kyren Wilson also struggled. In contrast, Fu's efficient, controlled breakbuilding looks perfect on these tables.

On the other table, I'm expecting Neil Robertson and Mark Allen to serve up a real treat. Robbo was outstanding in the first round and will take the world of stopping, but Allen is well capable of doing it. The Northern Irishman was also impressive and has thrived in the Crucible atmosphere before, notably when beating Ronnie in this round five years ago en route to the semis. He's a much more complete player nowadays, capable of the sort of one-visit snooker required to win this title.

It's hard to recommend Allen with confidence due to the quality of opposition, but 3.65 is worth an interest as a back to lay. I reckon this will go to the wire, with favouritism fluctuating. The plan is to stake four units at 3.65, then place an in-running order to lay ten units at 1.42/5. In effect, this is a 6-4 bet.

Recommended bets

Back Marco Fu 4u @ 2.3211/8 to beat Shaun Murphy

Back to lay

Back Mark Allen 4u @ 3.65 to beat Neil Robertson
Place order to lay Allen 10u @ 1.42/5