Hossein Vafaei vs Ma Hailong Prediction: Hailong’s try will not be enough

Mattioli Arena in Leicester will host the UK Championship Qualification encounter between Hossein Vafaei and Ma Hailong. This will be the first-ever meeting between these two players. Who wins this one?

Hossein Vafaei played Junhui Ding, and he lost 6-0 at the International Championship in China. However, Hossein Vafaei has not found much success in recent matches, picking wins over Jordan Brown, Dylan Emery, and Dian Xheng. In the meantime, he lost to Jimmy White, Anda Zhang, and Ishpreet Chada. Heading into this game as the better player, the Iranian professional will look to show character, be at his best and make it to the next round of this competition. 

Ma Hailong started his qualification strong, and he looks to be at his best again. In the first round, Ma Hailong pulled off a 6-3 win over Liam Pullen, extending his win to three in a row. In that run, Ma Hailong defeated Matthew Stevens, Siripaporn Baipat, Chirs Wakelin and Ali Carter. However, he lost to Mark Williams and Ryan Day in recent matches, encounters that ended 4-2 and 6-5. As the underdog, Ma Hailong will hope he can still be at his best, display class and make it to the next round of this qualifier. 

I will back Hossein Vafaei in this game despite his recent struggles. While Ma Hailong has been brilliant in recent games, it is still tough to confidently think he has a chance in this fixture, given his Hossein Vafaei dominance in his best days. The two players will not be written off, but a bet on a few points is the best deal, while Hossein Vafaei is expected to win by a margin.