Scottish Open semi-finals
Ranking, Snooker Headlines

Scottish Open: semi-finals draw, preview and schedule

Four players are in the hunt for the Scottish Open title with the semi-finals set to take place on Saturday in Edinburgh.

Both encounters in the last four pit former ranking event winners against players bidding for a maiden title at this level.

Neil Robertson vs Joe O’Connor (7pm)

Neil Robertson is a strong favourite to etch his name onto the Stephen Hendry Trophy for a second time this week.

The Australian is the sole remaining contender from the top 16 in the Scottish Open semi-finals draw.

Robertson produced a trademark performance of power scoring to overcome Mark Selby in the quarter-finals on Friday, compiling breaks of 133, 100, 99, 83, and 60.

While the 40 year-old remains on course for a 24th ranking title, his opponent Joe O’Connor is featuring at a semi-final stage for only the second time in his career.

O’Connor backed up his standout successes over Ding Junhui and Mark Williams in the earlier rounds with a 5-1 defeat of an out-of-sorts Ricky Walden.

The Englishman will be an enormous underdog against Robertson, and the only previous time they crossed paths ended in a 6-0 victory for the latter.

If Robertson replicates the kind of form he demonstrated against Selby, a similar rout may be on the cards.

Gary Wilson vs Thepchaiya Un-Nooh (1pm)

The afternoon affair in the Scottish Open semi-finals sees Thepchaiya Un-Nooh face Gary Wilson.

Un-Nooh prevailed in a dramatic tussle with Judd Trump on Friday that concluded in a deciding frame on a respotted black.

Wilson, meanwhile, fought back from behind to win the last four frames and beat European Masters champion Kyren Wilson 5-3.

The 37 year-old is bidding to reach a third ranking final after previous near-misses at the 2015 China Open and last year’s British Open when he finished as the tournament runner-up on both occasions.

Un-Nooh, on the other hand, has already won a ranking title, but given his previous triumph came at the Shoot Out, he would desperately love to prove his worth in an event of genuine length.

The Thai has faced Wilson three times on the Main Tour, and he interestingly boasts a 3-0 advantage from that head-to-head.

Race to the World Grand Prix

All four remaining players have jumped into the top 32 on the provisional one-year list that will be used to determine the World Grand Prix qualifiers in January.

With only the English Open to take place before the World Grand Prix, they will be looking to consolidate their spots with a big payday this week.

They’ve already earned £17,500 for reaching the Scottish Open semi-finals, but there’s double that amount for a berth in the final.

The champion on Sunday will walk away £80,000 richer.

Where to Watch the Scottish Open

The Scottish Open schedule will be available to UK and Irish viewers on Quest TV in addition to blanket Eurosport coverage provided across all of Europe.

Various broadcasters around the world will be offering coverage (information here), while fans in territories without another service can access the event through Matchroom.Live.

Featured image credit: WST

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