Coral Northern Ireland Open semis tips: Hawkins closes in on title swoop
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Coral Northern Ireland Open semis tips
World snooker’s number 14 and 15, Barry Hawkins and Kyren Wilson, look like being the unlikely finalists of the Coral Northern Ireland Open in Belfast after a plethora of top potters sunk at the Titanic Exhibition Centre on Thursday and Friday.
Neither player are particularly glamorous, but The Hawk’s gritty, grinding matchplay leaves him a worthy 11/10 favourite with the sponsors for a third and most significant ranking title.
Young Wilson is next in the outright betting at 7/4 for just a second success after winning the 2015 Shanghai Masters. The Warrior meets relative veteran Mark King (13/2 tournament chance), while Hawkins plays a resurgent Anthony Hamilton (15/2 outright outsider).
What look like the best bets from these green baize battles then? Our snooker experts give 2016 Coral Northern Ireland Open semis tips on the two tussles…
King v Wilson odds
If Wilson can beat former multiple World Snooker Championship winners Ronnie O’Sullivan and Mark Williams back-to-back, then King shouldn’t cause him any problems.
That current form is why The Warrior starts as odds-on 2/5 match favourite and better at 11/8 to cover a handicap betting deficit of 2.5 frames.
Facing Coral English Open winner Liang Wenbo apart, King has had a very, very easy run of opponents at this event, and a strong start from Wilson should expose him.
To that end, there’s value in taking the 11/10 for The Warrior to be frames 1-4 winner, or the 15/8 price on Wilson establishing a 3-1 lead by the mid-session interval.
Hawkins v Hamilton bets
There’s no denying that The Sheriff of Pottingham has recaptured some of his best form at the Coral Northern Ireland Open, but Hamilton lost his only previous encounter with Hawkins at the Crucible five years ago.
Knocking out home hope Mark Allen in the quarters is a definite scalp for the Nottingham native, but Hamilton is a 13/5 outsider. The Hawk looks set to soar to new heights at this event, and is a firm 2/7 favourite to make the final.
A string of strong displays from Hawkins has seen him drop no more than two frames in a single fixture so far. When it comes to Coral Northern Ireland Open semis tips, then, he looks more than capable of covering a 2.5 frame deficit in the handicap betting at evens.
This also makes under 8.5 frames in the match a terrific 13/8 punt. Correct score betting suggests siding with The Hawk for a 6-2 triumph at a nifty 9/2.
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Taking us up on King v Wilson odds or backing one of our Hawkins v Hamilton bets? Let us know in the comments section below!
