Judd Trump

Welsh Open snooker: Judd Trump avoids shock defeat against Duane Jones

Snooker

Tue February 27, 2018 · 8y ago

Judd Trump sneaked through to round two of the Welsh Open after coming through a final-frame decider against Duane Jones.

Trump, who lost 9-8 to Stuart Bingham in last year's final, was heading for the exit when world number 113 Jones was just six pots away from clearing up for a 4-3 win but he missed the yellow and paid the price.

He told www.worldsnooker.com: "It was a battle – Duane played well in his home tournament. He is a solid player and he has improved. I missed too many balls during the match and got unlucky a few times.

"My results this season have been mixed, I have been inconsistent. Mentally maybe I am not as strong as some of the other players because I get spells where I don’t want to play and I struggle to get up for some events. But I like this one because I feel close to home, I get a lot of support and I have always wanted to win it. I was gutted to lose in the final last year."

Jackson Page, a 16-year-old amateur, beat Sean O’Sullivan 4-3 and will now face defending champion Bingham, who defeated Chen Zhe 4-1.

Graeme Dott claimed a 4-0 win over Sanderson Lam and will now play Ronnie O’Sullivan, who was handed a bye because his opponent Robin Hull withdrew for medical reasons.

China’s Yan Bingtao came from 3-1 down to beat veteran Jimmy White 4-3, firing 69, 58 and 110 in the last three frames.

Ding Junhui eased to a 4-0 win over Hammad Miah with a top break of 89 while Neil Robertson made an 88 in a 4-1 defeat of Mark Davis.

Masters champion Mark Allen recovered a 2-1 deficit to beat Cao Yupeng 4-2 thanks to runs of 119, 72 and 56.

In the last match of the evening to finish, World Champion Mark Selby looked in fine form as he beat Christopher Keogan 4-2 with top breaks of 143 and 100.