The snooker season, after a stuttering start, is set to come to life in the latter part of August. Kicking off the fireworks is the inaugural Xi’an Grand Prix, a fiery new tournament blazing across China from the 19th to the 25th. Go through our 2024 Snooker Xi’an Grand Prix predictions and odds breakdown to find out what to expect from this new competition on the World Snooker Tour calendar.
The first edition of the Xi’an Grand Prix will unfold from August 19th to 25th at the Qujiang E-sports Centre, Xi’an, China. The journey to this grand stage began in the crucible of the Leicester Arena, where hopefuls clashed from July 25th to 27th in a battle to secure their place among the elite.
| ℹ️ Tournament: | 2024 Xi’an Grand Prix, World Snooker Tour 2024-25 (Ranking event) |
| 🎱 Venue: | Qujiang E-sports Centre, Xi’an, China |
| 🗓️ Dates: | Monday, 19 August to Sunday, 25 August, 2024 |
The World Snooker Tour made a splash in February by announcing the addition of the Xi’an Grand Prix to the 2024-25 season. This new ranking event boasts a lucrative champions prize money of £177,000 ($227,000). The overall prize pool of the tournament is £850,000 ($1 million), promising a real fight and great opportunities for snooker 2024 betting.
Snooker made a triumphant return to China in the 2023/24 season after a long pandemic-enforced absence. The circuit has enjoyed considerable success with three ranking events and the prestigious Shanghai Masters. The introduction of the 2024 Xi’an Grand Prix is a resounding testament to the resurgence of snooker in China.
Before we explore our expert 2024 Snooker Xi’an Grand Prix predictions, let’s examine the odds from the best PayPal betting sites. Here’s a breakdown of the latest betting lines for the tournament.
Ronnie O’Sullivan will go down in history as one of the greatest to ever pick up a cue. ‘The Rocket,’ however, will not come to China with fond memories, with the wounds of last month’s semi-final defeat at Shanghai Masters still fresh. Regardless, the 48-year-old has the most favorable 2024 Xi’an Grand Prix snooker odds, as per the top snooker betting companies.
Judd Trump, on the contrary, will be delighted to board the China-bound flight less than a month after conquering the 2024 Shanghai Masters. Trump will be a common name discussed across Xi’an Grand Prix 2024 snooker predictions.
Like the aforementioned duo, Mark Selby had also made a deep run at the Shanghai Masters. But after his semifinal heartbreak, he suffered another frustrating campaign in China as he crashed out of the Wuhan Open early. Regardless, the four-time world champion will enter the fray as one of the usual suspects in the Xi’an Grand Prix title race.
Mark Allen has often been accused as an underachiever despite having 11 ranking titles to his name. The current number one will be determined to continue his redemption run and pick up his first title of the 2024–25 snooker season.
‘The Magician’ will look to reinvent his magic once again after falling agonizingly short at the Shanghai Masters final last month. Murphy will be eager to end his ranking trophy drought in China next week, and those who bet on snooker in China believe the Englishman will be one of the favorites to lift the 2024 Xi’an Grand Prix Snooker trophy.
Bookmakers have unveiled their World Snooker Tour 2024-25 odds for the 2024 Xi’an Grand Prix Snooker, but don’t bet just yet! Let our snooker experts guide you to potential winners. Here are our top picks for the tournament:
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Judd Trump boasts an excellent record in China, with seven titles to his name, a feat matched only by Mark Selby. As the reigning Shanghai Masters champion and a proven winner on Chinese soil, ‘The Ace in the Pack’ is the overwhelming favorite to claim the first-ever Xi’an Grand Prix title, according to our Xi’an Grand Prix 2024 snooker predictions.
Trump, who secured five ranking titles last season, including two in China, now faces home favorite Ma Hailong in the last 64. This comes after his convincing victory over Antoni Kowalski in the first round just a few weeks ago.
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We have already made the case for Trump; now let’s explain why we think the great O’Sullivan will be one of the last two standing. Yes, we know that you have to go as far back as 2017 to relive his last ranking event success in China, but he did enjoy success in the Shanghai Masters Invitational and made the semi-finals of the tournament last month.
The Xi’an Grand Prix could throw a stronger challenge at the veteran, of course, but he has proved his resilience and quality over and over again. If he overcomes Hong Kong’s Wang Yuchen, the seven-time world champion faces 17-year-old Bulcsu Revesz in the last 64, with a potential third-round clash against Neil Robertson.
We expect him to win all these matches and set up a 2024 Shanghai Masters semi-final recap in the final.
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Mark Allen starts his Xi’an mission against struggling home player Liu Hongyu, who is yet to win a match this season. Given Allen’s expected dominance, betting on the match ending in under 6.5 frames could be a profitable gamble.
Allen will be determined to pick up a statement victory after bowing out of the Shanghai Masters last month with a premature defeat to local star Pang Xunsu. As things stand, it appears that the 67th-ranked Hongyu is up for a difficult outing.
We expect Judd Trump and Ronnie O’Sullivan to renew their rivalry in the 2024 Xi’an Grand Prix Snooker title match, with Trump frustrating the current world number five once again.
