UK Championships third round predictions and winner odds: King can frustrate

Free snooker tips, best bets and analysis for the Monday's third-round matches at the UK Championship.

Where to watch

BBC2 & Eurosport, 1pm & 7pm Monday

Best bets

Mark King +3.5 frames on handicap v Ronnie O'Sullivan
2pts 4-5 bet365

Third round preview

Seven-time UK Championship winner Ronnie O’Sullivan reeled off five frames on the spin to claim a 6-2 win over Robbie Williams in round two, but The Rocket should expect a much stiffer test from Mark King.

Ronnie has shown flashes of his brilliant best - he knocked in breaks of 139 and 131 in an opening-round 6-3 win over Michael White - but there have also been glimpses of vulnerability.

King is as gritty as they come and it is easy to envisage him frustrating O’Sullivan for large periods and dragging him out of his comfort zone.

That will be the gameplan of the Romford Battler, who showed all of his old ability remains intact when reaching the semi-finals of the English Open earlier this month.

King beat world number two Judd Trump in the quarter-finals before suffering a 6-4 defeat at the hands of Aussie ace Neil Robertson in the last four.

The 47-year-old has recorded a brace of 6-2 wins over Jackson Page and Gerrard Greene, who had earlier claimed the scalp of Kurt Maflin, at the York Barbican and should be confident with where his game is at.

Ronnie's class may ultimately tell but at a shade of odds-on King is worth backing to get to at least three frames on the board.

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