One-time world number two Jimmy White plays more for the enjoyment of the game these days rather than expecting to challenge for silverware and qualifying for the Scottish Open would be a defining moment in his season.
The Whirlwind has famously lost in all six of his World Championship final appearances and now, at 64 years of age, is a veteran of the circuit.
White has enjoyed plenty of success on the Seniors Tour in recent years but he has not won a ranking title since 2004 and just triumphing in this Scottish Open qualifier against Chinese talent Liu Hongyu would be a positive.
The 10-time ranking event winner defeated Leone Crowley 4-2 in his penultimate qualifier and now sets his sights on Liu, who is the world number 55.
The Chinese youngster made the semi-final of the English Open in 2023 to show his capabilities and will be keen to reproduce that level sooner rather than later.
This looks a tall order for White but that win over Crowley and overcoming Matthew Stevens 6-5 in qualifying for the International Championship last week will have him growing in belief.
Liu Hongyu v Jimmy White Tips Summary
Best Bet - Over 5.5 frames @ 8/11
Alternative Bet - Match to go to a deciding frame @ 11/4
Liu Hongyu v Jimmy White Prediction
Best Bet: Over 5.5 frames @ 8/11
White has failed to qualify for the main draw of the Scottish Open in each of the last two seasons and he has a difficult task on his hands against Liu.
However, White has won his last two matches, qualifying for the International Championship with a 6-5 success over Stevens and beating Crowley 4-2 in his previous Scottish Open qualifier, so confidence should be on the rise.
Those performances suggest that the Whirlwind is playing well enough to make this best-of-seven-frame contest close and Liu has found wins hard to come by, losing four of his last five matches.
White is unable to score with the same consistency he once did but he is a wily operator and his inexperienced opponent is still extremely raw.
Liu is a former ranking event semi-finalist, which highlights his talent, and he had breaks of 117, 70 and 62 in a 6-4 victory over Chinese compatriot Lan Yuhao in International Championship qualifying last week.
But five of his last seven matches have gone over the total frames, two of which have gone to deciders, so this could be a scrap to the finishing line.
Alternative Bet: Match to go to a deciding frame @ 11/4
Liu defeated White 10-3 when they locked horns in World Championship qualifying two years ago but he has not yet kicked on as expected and this is unlikely to be one-way traffic.
White has won three of his last four matches, beating Sean O’Sullivan, Stevens and Crowley in various qualifiers, and that shows that he can still mix it on the main tour.
Liu is clearly capable of climbing the rankings given that he is still only 22 years of age, but his progress has stalled and two of his last three best-of-seven contests, against Liam Davies and Wu Yize, went to a deciding frame.
Liu Hongyu v Jimmy White H2H Record & Stats
Liu Hongyu Wins | 1 |
Jimmy White Wins | 0 |
Key Match Stats
White has won three of his last four matches
Liu has lost four of his last five matches
Five of Liu’s last seven matches have gone over the total frames
Liu has had the highest break in his last three outings
Liu was a 10-3 winner in his only previous meeting with White
The Chinese youngster has lost only six of his last 18 matches
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.
