Adam Williams presents his prediction for the Players Championship match.
Xiao Guodong and Wu Yize will play each other in the first round of the Players Championship. The winner of this match will advance to face John Higgins or Chris Wakelin in the quarter-finals.
Xiao Guodong
Xiao has had a brilliant autumn part of the season. After the quarter-finals of the prestigious Saudi Arabian Masters, Guodong won the Wuhan Open, beating Si Jiahui (10-7) in the final. Xiao also reached the semi-finals of the International Championship, where he lost (9-8) in the deciding frame to Chris Wakelin and then reached the final of the Champion of Champions, where he beat Ronnie O’Sullivan, Kyren Wilson and Mark Allen, but lost (10-6) in the final to Mark Williams. This achievement helped Xiao soar into the top 16 and qualify for the Players Series tournaments. At the World Grand Prix, Xiao Guodong won a close battle against Jak Jones (4-3) and Lei Peifan 4-3, but lost to eventual winner Neil Robertson (5-3).
Wu Yize
Wu Yize also had a great first half of the season, playing the best snooker of his career. Yize reached the final of the English Open, where he lost to Neil Robertson (9-7), and in December he reached the final of the Scottish Open, but lost to Lei Peifan (9-5). It is also worth noting that Wu reached the final of the UK Championship, winning the first round against Si Jiahui (6-4), but then losing to Mark Allen (6-4) in a close match. Wu Yize is making great progress, and has already secured a place in the top 32 and is ranked 22nd. At the World Grand Prix, Wu Yize beat Pang Junxu (4-0), but lost to eventual finalist Stuart Bingham (4-2). Yize is currently 12th in the Tour Championship rankings and will qualify for the third Players Series event unless Chris Wakelin overtakes him, which Wakelin needs to beat John Higgins, which is hard to believe. So, we are almost certain that we will see Yize at the Tour Championship
Xiao Guodong vs Wu Yize Prediction
Xiao Guodong and Wu Yize have already played each other this season at the Scottish Open, and then Wu Yize won (6-4). We think this will be a close match between two good players, and this meeting may well end in a deciding frame. Xiao has been playing better this season and has fewer losses to players lower in the rankings. Xiao is already a formed player, while Wu Yize is only 21 years old and has yet to find the balance in his game. Xiao Guodong is a slight favourite in this match, and deservedly so, but we expect we will see a lot of big breaks, and we are going to bet on each player making a century break.
