The return of the China Open to the World Snooker calendar will be particularly welcome news to Mark Selby, who will face Pang Junxu in the first round at the Riverside Sports Centre, Taiyuan on Monday.
This will be the first time the China Open has been staged since 2019, but Englishman Selby has fond memories of the event, winning it three times in four years between 2015 and 2018.
Only Mark Williams can match the Jester from Leicester's record of three China Open successes, but Selby goes into this year's event with little form behind him after losing in the opening round of the Shanghai Masters - his only tournament appearance of the season to date.
Opponent Pang has also made a relatively slow start to the campaign and his record against Selby does not inspire confidence, as he has lost all four previous head-to-heads between the pair.
Mark Selby v Pang Junxu Tips Summary
Best Bet - Pang Junxu + 2.5 @ 11/10
Alternative Bet - Mark Selby to win 6-5 @ 13/2
Alternative Bet - Pang Junxu under 0.5 centuries @ 1/2
Mark Selby v Pang Junxu Prediction
Best Bet: Pang Junxu + 2.5 @ 11/10
Selby may have fond memories of the China Open but he goes into this year's event - the second ranking tournament of the season - short of match practice.
The four-time world champion opted to swerve the season opening Championship League before losing in the first round of the Shanghai Masters - a non-ranking event but one with plenty of prestige - to Zhou Yuelong.
With many of his qualifying matches for upcoming events yet to take place, Selby would appear undercooked and could perhaps be vulnerable heading into this clash with Pang.
Pang was also beaten in the first round of the Shanghai Masters, but he pushed fellow Chinese player Si Jiahui hard, going down 6-4, and he has also racked up some decent results in qualifying.
The 26-year-old thrashed Dylan Emery 6-0 in his opening qualifier for this event before seeing off compatriot Fan Zhengyi 6-4 to reach the first round, while he also disposed of former world champion Luca Brecel to book his place in the main draw of the Shenzhen Open.
He has lost all four of his previous meetings with Selby - including in the final of the 2023 WST Classic - but Pang has pushed his illustrious opponent hard in their last two head-to-heads, going down in a deciding frame at the 2024 British Open and at the Xi'an Grand Prix in the same year.
In a best-of-11 frame contest, the scope for a shock is there, but even if Pang can't get over the line and secure a victory, he should be able to push Selby hard.
Alternative Bet: Mark Selby to win 6-5 @ 13/2
Selby has only played one match this season, but his clash with Zhou was an exciting and topsy turvy affair, as after trailing for much of the contest, he battled back to establish a 5-4 lead before losing the final two frames.
A similarly nip-and-tuck match can be expected when the 43-year-old takes on Pang, especially considering the last two head-to-heads have gone to a deciding frame.
Pang is also fresh from his eye-catching victory over Brecel in Shenzhen Open qualifying so his confidence should be high, but ultimately, if it goes to a deciding frame, it should be Selby that prevails to set up a last-16 clash with either Kyren Wilson or Aaron Hill.
Alternative Bet: Pang Junxu under 0.5 centuries @ 1/2
Pang should emerge with credit from this first-round clash, but he is unlikely to produce too many big breaks, as he has recorded only three century breaks across 64 frames of competitive action this season.
Two of those three-figure knocks came in a Wuhan Open qualifier against world number 114 Oliver Sykes and he is unlikely to get many opportunities among the balls when facing a player of Selby's quality.
The world number 26 has never made a century break in his four previous meetings with Selby and that unwanted record could well be extended on Monday.
Mark Selby v Pang Junxu H2H Record & Stats
Mark Selby | 4 |
Pang Junxu | 0 |
Key Match Stats
- This will be just Mark Selby's second competitive match of the season
- Selby is a three-time former winner of the China Open
- The Jester from Leicester has won all four of his previous meetings with Pang Junxu
- Pang has never recorded a century break against Selby
- The last two meetings between the pair have gone to a deciding frame
- Pang has made the final of only one ranking event before, losing to Selby in the 2023 WST Classic showpiece
Read more snooker betting tips and predictions on site.
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.
