The final pieces of the 2014 World Championship draw were completed today at lunchtime.
In short the already very tough bottom half was strengthened even further while the top half is looking more and more predictable.
Robin Hull, the lowest seed to qualify, has the daunting task of facing two time defending champion Ronnie O'Sullivan on Saturday. This
already looks like an impossible task and a potentially kinder opening draw for the Rocket.
I picked out four players I thought were the ones to avoid before the draw: Xiao Guodong, Kyren Wilson, Michael White & Martin Gould. The unfortunate seeds to draw these players are Ali Carter (v Xiao), Ricky Walden (v Wilson), Mark Selby (v White) & Marco Fu (v Gould).
There will be an all Scottish affair after John Higgins was drawn to face his former mentor Alan McManus, good friends off the table this will prove to be a tough but enjoyable match for both players.
Tom Ford v Judd Trump and Ryan Day v Stephen Maguire are both very enticing first round encounters in the already stacked bottom half. I fancy Trump to progress in a tight match. Given Maguire's current form he might be another seed to fall to the three time Crucible quarter finalist Day.
My Predictions in full are
Ronnie O'Sullivan 10 v 3 Robin Hull
Joe Perry 10 v 5 Jamie Burnett
Shaun Murphy 10 v 5 Jamie Cope
Marco Fu 10 v 6 Martin Gould
Barry Hawkins 10 v 4 David Gilbert
Ricky Walden 8 v 10 Kyren Wilson
Mark Davis 8 v 10 Dominic Dale
Ding Junhui 10 v 2 Michael Wasley
Mark Selby 10 v 7 Michael White
Allister Carter 9 v 10 Xiao Guodong
John Higgins 10 v 7 Alan McManus
Stuart Bingham 10 v 4 Ken Doherty
Judd Trump 10 v 8 Tom Ford
Stephen Maguire 6 v 10 Ryan Day
Mark Allen 10 v 6 Michael Holt
Neil Robertson 10 v 5 Robbie Williams
In recent seasons we've seen a lot of top seeds fall, however this year I've only picked four to fall from 16 matches.
I think the quarter final line up will be
Ronnie O'Sullivan v Shaun Murphy
Hawkins v Ding Junhui
Xiao Guodong v John Higgins
Judd Trump v Neil Robertson
Semi's
Ronnie O'Sullivan v Ding Junhui
John Higgins v Neil Robertson
This is what I think might happen, but it's also a bit of dream semi final line up. The best players of the last 15 years and the new two best players in the world. I would actually pick both the older World Champions in Ronnie O'Sullivan and John Higgins to meet in another World final, one that would surely be a classic, and a 5th World Title for the Wizard of Wishaw.
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