Mark Selby v Jack Lisowski: Prediction, Tips and Odds

There are some mouthwatering first-round ties taking place at this season’s UK Championship and this is definitely one of them as two-time winner Mark Selby meets 2022 semi-finalist Jack Lisowski.

Lisowski is a supremely talented performer who has arguably underachieved given the raw talent he possesses, but he remains capable of producing world-class snooker and has proven his sharpness with two qualifying wins.

Selby will have to be on his A-game and he is bidding to put a poor recent record in this tournament behind him, with his seven visits since his second title success in 2016 yielding only two quarter-final appearances.

Lisowski was a semi-finalist here in 2022, having made the quarter-finals in each of the two previous years, but his form this season has been up and down.

Selby, on the other hand, claimed silverware in the British Open in September and showed himself to be in decent touch at the Champion of Champions most recently.

Mark Selby v Jack Lisowski betting tips and predictions

Mark Selby -1.5 frames on the handicap - 5/6

Selby may not have the best recent record at the UK Championship but he is a two-time winner and a potentially decent draw to work with should ensure he is fully focused from the off.

Selby will know how dangerous a scorer Lisowski can be and won’t be taking him for granted, so punters may expect to see the Jester from Leicester at his cast-iron best.

Recent signs have been encouraging, too. It was only in September when Selby claimed his 23rd ranking title at the British Open and he lost little in defeat at the recent Champion of Champions, defeating Shaun Murphy before being edged out 6-5 by the in-form Xiao Guodong in the quarter-finals.

Selby scored well and looked sharp in those recent assignments and will be buoyed by the fact that he has won six of his last seven meetings with Lisowski.

Lisowski has won two qualifiers to book his place in the main draw at the York Barbican but it is hard to know what he achieved in overcoming world number 78 Thor Chuan Leong and women’s world champion Bai Yulu.

This will be a much sterner test and Jack-Pot has struggled for consistency this season, making only one quarter-final from seven ranking event appearances.

So it seems wise to take on Lisowski and Selby, who is 8/15 to make the last 16, can run out a comfortable winner.

The Jester from Leicester has lost only four of his last 18 matches and looks worth backing to cover a start of -1.5 frames at 5/6.

Under 1.5 centuries - 6/5

Selby is a tactical genius and, while he can score heavily, he won’t want to get embroiled in a free-scoring encounter with a confidence player such as Lisowski.

Selby is likely to have the edge in tactical frames and that advantage may mean that open frames are not as easy to come by as Lisowski would like.

In qualifying, Lisowski had only one century despite winning 12 frames and it could be worth taking a chance on under 1.5 centuries at 6/5, something which has occurred in seven of his last nine matches. 

Three of Selby’s last four matches have featured one or fewer centuries, too, and this first-round encounter may follow a similar narrative with both desperate to reach the last 16.

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Mark Selby v Jack Lisowski odds

Mark Selby - 8/15
Jack Lisowski - 6/4

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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.