Judd Trump
Judd Trump

Snooker results: Judd Trump eases through; Ding Junhui whitewashed by Scott Donaldson


Judd Trump made the perfect start to his defence of the Coral World Grand Prix with a brutal 4-1 demolition of Li Hang in Cheltenham.

The reigning world champion and current world number one has been busy of late having lifted the German Masters title on Sunday but he looked razor sharp once again, producing a sublime display that very nearly ended with three successive centuries.

For Hang's part, he did very little wrong and would have held high hopes of causing an upset when taking the opening frame with a brilliant total clearance of 129.

However, that was to be his last moment of cheer on a night where Trump laid down his own title marker following Ronnie O'Sullivan's first-round victory on Monday evening.

Trump needed a couple of visits to get his first frame on the board but a run of 65 allowed him to level the scores and he followed up with a flawless break of 100 in frame three, one that was packed full of stun shots, clever cannons and precise cue-ball control.

With the bit now firmly between his teeth, Trump needed no second invitation when getting his hand on the table in the fourth frame and he fairly breezed around the table on the way to a magnificent total clearance of 138 that put him within touching distance of victory.

Trump's only moment of concern in that visit came when he found himself wrong side of pink when not yet past the snookers required stage.

What followed was another contender for shot of the season from Trump; the left-hander screwing the white in and out of baulk off one cushion and landing perfectly on the next red sitting just above the black, allowing him to seal the frame and motor towards his second century of the match.

A third very nearly followed in the fifth and what proved to be final frame, Trump racing into the next round with a break of 97 which was made possible by another brilliant pink - this time to the green pocket - that ensured Hang had played his last shot of this year's tournament.

Despite clearing the table with a break of 130 in frame five, Mark Allen slumped to a 4-2 defeat at the hands of Liang Wenbo.

Having lost the opening frame, Wenbo took control of the match when winning three frames on the bounce to lead 3-1 and a break of 62 was enough to get him over the line in frame six.

A couple of late finishes in the evening session saw Matthew Stevens and Matthew Selt claim notable scalps as they progressed to the second round.

Stevens overcame a 3-1 deficit to get the better of Shaun Murphy 4-3 while Selt held his nerve in a tense deciding frame to see off Thepchaiya Un-Nooh by the same scoreline.

Scott Donaldson made it three victories over Ding Junhui in just three weeks as he whitewashed the UK champion.

Donaldson saw off Ding having previously beaten Kyren Wilson at the European Masters and he won a final-frame decider against the Chinese in Germany last week, before a 4-0 romp in the World Grand Prix on Tuesday afternoon.

Despite waiting until the fourth and final frame for his only sizeable break, a match-winning 81, Donaldson was always in control. The killer blow came when he took the third frame on a re-spotted black as Ding's post-York woes continued.

Donaldson on the other hand continues to impress having climbed to 22nd in the world rankings this year, thanks largely to quarter-final runs in Austria and his native Scotland.

Neil Robertson overcame stern resistance from Michael Holt to maintain his good run of form and advance after a 4-3 win.

The Australian has played in the last two finals on the World Snooker Tour, winning 9-0 in Austria before suffering defeat to Judd Trump in Germany on Sunday.

There were some signs of a busy schedule having left its mark here, but Robertson was poised and professional when in among the balls in a scrappy decider as he avoided following Ding and Mark Selby out of the tournament with a match-winning 79 break.

On the other table, Joe Perry beat in-form Ali Carter 4-2 in a battle of the veterans and will face Donaldson next.

Perry potted a brilliant pink in the sixth frame, powering the cue ball over to the opposite side of the table for position on the black, and in it went to seal a convincing victory.

Perry had taken the opening three frames, including with a break of 106 in the second, and Carter's comeback came too late.

Graeme Dott built on last week's semi-final run in a 4-1 victory over Kurt Maflin, breaks of 76 and 58 enough to set up a clash with Selby's conqueror, Xiao Guodong.

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