World Snooker Championship 2015: Schedule, Draw, Live Stream, TV Info, Preview

The finest snooker players on the planet will descend on the Crucible over the next couple of weeks, with 32 men set to battle it out for the right to be called the world’s best.

Mark Selby is the reigning champion and top seed in this competition, as he bids to win his second world crown. But with men like Ronnie O’Sullivan, Ding Junhui and Neil Robertson all set to be in attendance, it’s going to be a thrilling fortnight at the iconic Sheffield venue.

Ahead of the action getting underway in earnest, here’s all the information needed on where to catch the action live and a closer examination of some of the top contenders for glory this year.

Player 1		Player 2
Mark Selby	vs.	Kurt Maflin
Stephen Maguire	vs.	Anthony McGill
Joe Perry	vs.	Zhang Anda
Shaun Murphy	vs.	Robin Hull
Barry Hawkins	vs.	Matthew Selt
Mark Allen	vs.	Ryan Day
Ali Carter	vs.	Alan McManus
Neil Robertson	vs.	Jamie Jones
Ding Junhui	vs.	Mark Davis
John Higgins	vs.	Rob Milkins
Marco Fu	vs.	Jimmy Robertson
Judd Trump	vs.	Stuart Carrington
Ricky Walden	vs.	Graeme Dott
Stuart Bingham	vs.	Robbie Williams
Mark Williams	vs.	Matthew Stevens
Ronnie O’Sullivan	vs.	Craig Steadman

TV Info: BBC (UK)

Live Stream: BBC iPlayer (UK)

For full tournament schedule and draw, check out the World Snooker website.

Mark Selby

The man dubbed the “Jester from Leicester” shone brightest of all the players in this competition last year, making good on his undeniable talent to secure his maiden world title. As the top seed coming into the tournament this year, the pressure will be firmly on Selby to repeat the trick.

Here’s a look at the 2014 champion with his trophy, per Betfred:

Ominously for the chasing pack, Selby is in exemplary form coming into this one too. He was suffering with neck injuries ahead of his previous ranking tournament—the China Open—but was still able to make his way through to the final, where he hammered Gary Wilson 10-2 to take the title.

During the aforementioned match, he compiled an exceptional break of 145, as we can see here:

After being on the scene for a while and showcasing his ability year upon year, Selby was often referred to as the best player on the circuit not to have sampled glory at the Crucible. So the 2014 title was one that lifted the weight off his shoulders and, while his form did suffer slightly in the early parts of the 2014/15 campaign, he looks back to his best once again.

It’ll be intriguing to see exactly how he fares defending this prestigious title, but the world No. 1 is a player who is increasingly at ease with his new-found stature. As such, expect another strong performance here but for the Leicester-born star to fall just short of back-to-back wins.

Prediction: Runner-Up

Ronnie O’Sullivan

With five world titles securely stashed away, the player many expect to push Selby the closest will be second seed O’Sullivan.

There are few players in the draw who have experience to match the 39-year-old and such is his natural talent, if he turns on the style at the Crucible, there is absolutely nobody in the field capable of living with him.

But such is his often capricious nature, when Rocket turns up to a tournament like this, there’s always a sense of mystery until he gets down to play his opening shot.

As we can see here courtesy of Eurosport.com, the five-time champion has been preparing for the tournament in somewhat unusual style:

What O’Sullivan should we expect this year then? In truth, it’s difficult to get a clear indication of his form, as he withdrew from the China Masters. But it wasn’t too long ago he produced this sensational 147 break against Matthew Selt at the UK Championship:

Typically, it’s the showpiece tournaments in which we see the best from O’Sullivan. The Crucible is a stage which seems to stir something within him, and while Ronnie may not be everyone’s cup of tea, it’s impossible to deny the natural genius of the man.

That fundamental ability in itself makes him a major contender for this title. Having lost out to Selby last year, Rocket will be intent on grabbing glory for the sixth time and joining Ray Reardon and Steve Davis on six career world titles. That’d put him one behind the all-time leader, the great Stephen Hendry.

Prediction: Winner