‘One of the best you’ll see all season’ – Trump manufactures ‘magical’ clearance
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If Judd Trump wonders whether he is making the right choice by reverting to his trusty old cue at the UK Championship in York, he can always take a trip down memory lane to enjoy his greatest hits. The world No. 1 looks like he is at peace with his game judging by the levels of form he has produced to beat Stephen Maguire 6-4 and Si Jiahui 6-3 in the first two rounds of his title defence.
A break of 100 in defeating Maguire was followed by a superb 117 against Si before he completed one of the finest 66 clearances of his career to pinch the fourth frame for a 3-1 lead on Thursday night against a disbelieving opponent.
Trump will take on Ding Junhui or Scott Donaldson for a semi-final place on Friday, but his peace of mind in potting some key balls under pressure can perhaps be attributed to his state of contentment with his equipment.
After losing 10-5 to Mark Selby in the final of the Champion of Champions in Leicester last month, the 30-time ranking event winner opted to dispense with his experiment using a titanium ferrule and return to a traditional brass ferrule.
The cue he is brandishing at the Barbican was the familiar stick which helped him conquer the world in 2019 with an 18-9 filleting of four-time champion John Higgins in Sheffield.
“He doesn’t just overwhelm the opponent, he overwhelms the snooker table,” said Higgins after that final. “I don’t think there’s been quite a player like him.
“I was the lucky one to not have to pay for a ticket, he was just awesome.”
In a match that produced a record 11 centuries, one of Trump’s most memorable pots came in the 10th frame of the Crucible final.
Trailing 5-4 but holding a 62-0 lead, he went for an audacious long pot on a red near a side rail requiring one more ball to seal the frame.
“This is tough. There’s not a ball safe here… aw that is unbelievable,” said former Hong Kong Open winner Mike Hallett in commentary as the red almost crushed the pocket.
A huge rush of awe and applause greeted the shot of the tournament by the audience with the style of his pot compared to 1983 UK champion Alex Higgins.
“That’s the late, great Alex Higgins at his Hurricane best,” said Philip Studd.
‘Proper tournament’ – Trump praises venue and ‘perfect-sized’ pockets after win over Si
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Trump, who is bidding to avoid a trophyless year for the first time since 2013, has grown more measured with age, but can still conjure up moments of inspirational brilliance when the mood takes him.
He is clearly regaining self-belief after whitewashing Mark Williams 4-0 at the Riyadh Season Championship before losing 4-3 to world champion Zhao Xintong in the semi-finals ahead of his year-ending trip to York.
“It is nice to just be playing snooker,” he told reporters. “I don’t know what will happen after this tournament, but for now I’m very comfortable with this cue. Everything is good.
“The venue is great, conditions are perfect and this is somewhere I enjoy coming.”
‘That’s worth four frames’ – Trump’s ‘other-worldly’ steal analysed
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