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Snooker International Championship Betting Tips 2026: Jak Jones Well Worth A Second Look

12 minutes ago

| BY Sam Cox

Defending champion Wu Yize is among the snooker betting favourites for the 2026 International Championship in Nanjing.

The event starts on Saturday 31st October 2026, with the final taking place a week later on Saturday 7th November 2026. There’s a total prize fund of £825,000.

Form Men

Kyren Wilson and Jak Jones met in the final of the Northern Ireland Open, with Wilson running out an emphatic 9-2 victor. It was a return to the top for the former world champion, who hadn’t won a ranking event since the Players Championship in 2024/25.

Jones, meanwhile, reached his third ranking final of the year after winning the Championship League and the British Open. The Welshman is up to 18th in the world rankings.

Neil Robertson and Mark Selby have overtaken Judd Trump in the rankings, despite disappointing showings in Northern Ireland.

The Draw & Predictions

Elliot Slessor, Xiao Guodong, Anthony McGill, David Gilbert, Noppon Saengkham, and Ali Carter are some of the most recognisable names to have fallen in the qualifying phase. Defending champion Wu hasn’t confirmed his place in the first round at the time of writing – which will impact sports betting markets for sure.

If Wu does make it through unscathed, he will likely matchup with Stephen Maguire in the second round. Wilson and Wu are on a collision course in the quarters. Form man Jones is likely to face Robertson in the second round and has John Higgins, Mark Williams, and Stuart Bingham in his section.

Shaun Murphy, who has reached the last eight or better at three ranking events this season, is in the bottom quarter of the draw. Murphy has a pretty favourable path to the quarters here, though bettors should keep a close eye on Sam Craigie after his semi-final run in the Northern Ireland Open.

It takes a brave man to bet against Jones going on a deep run in his current form, even with such a daunting path. Murphy is once again well-placed, with Zhao Xingtao – the highest seed in his section – underwhelming in recent ranking events.