A six-time world champion in his own right, just one behind O’Sullivan and Hendry’s joint record, Davis had this to say about Selby: “He’s probably the most underrated player in the game by the general public who don’t watch enough snooker to realise how talented he is.
“I think he’s top three standard ever. Ronnie O’Sullivan, John Higgins and Mark Selby. The actual standard. Mark Williams is in there as well. But he can produce an astonishing standard; relentless stuff and once he’s in the zone, what a player.
“But as we know, getting in the zone for this best-of-19 first round, which seems incredibly short a distance compared to the 25, which is your reward, it’s tough out there, you can panic.”
“As we know, getting in the zone for this best-of-19 first round, which seems incredibly short a distance compared to the 25, which is your reward, it’s tough out there, you can panic.”
Hendry, who counts Davis amongst his closest friends, is level with O’Sullivan when it comes to World Championship victories, with both men having lifted the coveted title seven times.
O’Sullivan, 50, swept the first five frames and heads into the second session with a 7-2 lead, requiring just three more frames to progress when the match continues this afternoon.
Higgins got his Crucible campaign underway on Tuesday, with the four-time world champion dispatching Ali Carter 10-7.
Selby is chasing a fifth world title this year, taking on Jak Jones in the first round, with 22-year-old Chinese star Wu Yize lying in wait in the second round for the winner.