After a record 109 centuries in last year's World Snooker Championship, bet365 are offering 5/1 on a century being scored in every game at the Crucible this year.  

Getting into three figures usually means a winning frame for snooker's top players in Sheffield and, after there were an incredible109 last year in total to keep the fans entertained, will there be even more cueing excellency and even bigger scores this time around?

The grandest tournament in snooker gets underway at the famous Crucible venue, which has staged the event every year since 1977, on Saturday 15th April and runs until the final on Monday 1st May.

5/1 for a century to be scored in every game at the World Snooker Championship
 

O'Sullivan after more centuries and another world title

The world's top players will all once again converge on the Steel City for the biggest prize in the sport, dreaming of taking home the huge £500,000 winners' cheque and hoisting aloft the famous trophy.

Defending champion and world number one Ronnie O'Sullivan is the favourite at 4/1 in the To Win Outright market, just ahead of world number five and 2019 world champ, Judd Trump, who is 9/2 to triumph overall this year.

Plenty will also be hoping to add their names to the eight-strong list of players who have managed a maximum 147 break in the main competition at the Crucible, but compiling a break of 100 or more is still a noteworthy achievement in its own right - even if it is now commonplace.

With bet365 offering a tempting 5/1 for a century being scored in every match this year, it's time to look at some of the stats behind the increasing number of three-figure breaks in the World Championship, while we also assess the current players in form likely to be keeping the scoreboard busy.
 

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Format offers plenty of century chances

The format of the famous tournament remains straight forward, with 32 players entering the first round, which is played out over the best-of-19 frames. The second round then features the 16 winners and the competition progresses naturally into the quarter-finals, through the semis and final, with the amount of frames increasing as it goes on.

The second round and quarter-finals are both played out over the best-of-25 frames, with the semis designated as a best-of-33 frames clash and the final a best-of 35.

With 31 matches in total then in Sheffield, and the amount of frames increasing as the tournament develops, there is ample opportunity for regular three-figure scoring.

Interestingly, in 2022, when Ronnie O'Sullivan eventually prevailed to win his joint-record seventh World Championship crown, there were only two games out of 31 in which a century wasn't scored in - the first round matches between Stephen Maguire and Shaun Murphy, which Maguire won, and Anthony McGill's victory over Liam Highfield.

Of the record 109 century breaks made - which was one more than the previous year - Mark Williams made 16 tons during last year's event, equalling the long-standing record set by the legendary Stephen Hendry, who also achieved that many in 2002.

And with the standard seemingly as high as ever going into this year's event, there could be even more 100-plus breaks in 2023. The amount of century breaks has steadily risen since the first Crucible tournament when there were just six recorded in 1977.
 

Robertson in century-making form

O'Sullivan comes into the tournament having registered 28 tons so far this year, with 'The Rocket' a fair bit behind Neil Robertson, who is 7/1 to win the 2023 World Championship, and Trump at the top of the list, with both players already accruing 45 centuries this year.

Next on the list is Shaun Murphy with 41, while Mark Allen has hit 40 centuries in 2023 so far. Murphy is 11/1 to win the World Championship Outright, Allen is a 12/1 shot.

While defending champion O'Sullivan may be a bit behind his rivals in terms of century breaks so far this year, he has, unsurprisingly, had the most tons at the Crucible, with a hugely-impressive 199 on his record. It underlines the 47-year-old's dominance of the tournament in recent times that the next best on that particular rundown is John Higgins with 164 - 37 more than Hendry.

O'Sullivan will be hoping to considerably add to his tally of Crucible centuries in 2023 and all the signs are that it could be another record-breaking year.

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Odds displayed within this article were correct at the time of writing and are subject to fluctuation. 
 

bet365 News Team

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