Jamie Jones vs Ricky Walden Prediction: Walden to make it to the next round

In the day one action of the Snooker World Open, Jamie Jones is scheduled to face Ricky Walden in the round of 1/32 at the Yushan Sport Centre in China. Both players have had a lackluster performance leading up to this game, and they will need to significantly improve their game. Let's preview this matchup and explore potential betting opportunities.

Jamie Jones suffered a loss in his recent outing against Robert Milkins in the final round of the Welsh Open qualification. Looking at Jamie Jones's recent performance, the Welsh snooker player has only managed to secure victory in one out of his last five matches and two out of his last eight. Among his wins were victories over Mark Allen and Robbie Lawler. However, he faced defeats in matches against opponents such as Judd Trump, Steven Hallworth, Dominic Dale, and Thepchaiya Un-Nooh. As he enters this game, Jamie Jones is once again the underdog and will need to elevate his performance significantly if he hopes to emerge victorious this time.

Ricky Walden is currently experiencing a streak of four defeats, and in this upcoming match, the Englishman will be eager to reverse this trend. Among his recent losses were matches against Junxu Pang, Kyren Wilson, Zhengyi Fan, and Elliot Slessor. However, within his last seven matches, Walden did manage to secure a 3-0 victory over Sam Craige. Nonetheless, he also suffered defeats against Anthony McGill and Joe O’Connor during this period.

This game is expected to be closely contested, with both players striving to emerge victorious. Ricky Walden has historically performed well in this matchup, and I anticipate him being in peak form. While Jamie Jones is capable of narrowing the odds, it's worth considering placing a bet on a high total number of frames.