Malcolm Willstrop looks at the draw

The lineup for the Kuwait Open has a quite frightening look about it. As the tournament deserves everyone is there and as is the norm the draw throws up its usual quota of massive matches.

Try the first round: Adrian Grant v Azlan Iskandar, Peter Barker v Stewart Boswell, Nick Matthew v Olli Tuominen, to say little of such intriguing matches  as Cameron Pilley v John White  and Laurens Jan Anjema v Karim Darwish all in, yes, the last 32.

Moving to the last sixteen, if seedings work out:

   Shabana v Grant/Iskandar
   Willstrop v Beachill
   Palmer v Boswell
   Matthew v Abbas
   Ricketts v El Hindi
   Lincou v Ong
   Ashour v Darwish
   Gaultier v White                     the full draw

What a feast! Willstrop, fresh from his success at Canary Wharf, will attempt to repeat his first-ever win over Beachill; Palmer will attempt to stave off Boswell, whose recent form gives him every chance; Matthew and Abbas will replay their Malaysian Open semi-final which Abbas won 3/2.

The improved El Hindi will face Ricketts, whose preparation cannot have been helped by his arm problems. Darwish, hoping to repeat his surprise win over Ashour in Chicago, and White, who performed miracles in London, against Gaultier, who has also had injury problems.

The gap between Malaysia, Canary Wharf and Kuwait means everyone has the chance to freshen up, which doesn't always happen. Shabana, Ricketts and Gaultier return off the back of injuries, as do Matthew and Beachill, though the latter pair have had sufficient matchplay.

No player, however confident he may feel, can look at the draw without some sense of trepidation, since for most there is danger from day one.

It is hardly worth surmising the possibilities of the last eight, since there is so much to happen before that stage is reached.

To try to select the likely winner is nigh on impossible and no one quarter of the draw looks easier than any other. So many of the players are proven winners at the highest level that clearly whoever arrives in Kuwait in the best prepared state will be the one to be on. He will also need some luck.

The only certainty is that watchers in Kuwait - and I hope they will be there in their thousands - will be regally entertained.

Canary Wharf
Challenge Winners

Congratulations to Lloyd Barcza and Shaun Le Roux, who scored 11 points in the Canary Wharf quiz, they win tournament shirts.

Bad luck to the seven on 10 points, and the eleven who scored just 1 point ...