Adam Williams presents his prediction for the UK Championship snooker match.
Barry Hawkins
Barry Hawkins beat Ronnie O'Sullivan 6-4 in the first match of the UK Championship. This result is not unexpected given Ronnie's poor form. Barry was trailing 3-1, but he did not give up and managed to defeat Ronnie for the third time in his career. Hawkins showed excellent play and the ability to capitalise on his opportunities in tense situations. Now that Ronnie and Mark Selby are out, there are several contenders for the title at the top of the draw, and if Barry wishes to compete for the trophy, he needs to beat David Gilbert, and then Shaun Murphy or Ding Junhui to reach the semi-finals.
David Gilbert
David Gilbert beat Xiao Guodong 6-4 in his first match. Gilbert led for almost the entire match, played better, and remained more focused. He did not achieve any century breaks but did manage six 50+ breaks, demonstrating that he took advantage of his opponent's mistakes and quickly adapted to the conditions of the table. Gilbert also made four half-centuries in each match during the qualifying rounds against Xing Zihao and Julien Leclercq. After enduring four consecutive losses, it was difficult to find his form in a short period, but David accomplished it.
Barry Hawkins vs David Gilbert Prediction
Barry Hawkins is a slight favourite in this match, but we consider both players to have equal chances of winning. We think it will be a close game, where much will be decided by one or two mistakes in each frame, as both players are capable of turning their opportunities into winning frames. We suggest placing a bet on the number of half-centuries; both Gilbert and Hawkins have made some significant breaks in their recent matches, so we believe we will see at least seven half-centuries in this game from both players.
