I had hoped that Ding could replicate his last-16 form, but he looked subdued, especially at the start of the match. He did fight well from 3-0 down, but it was too much to do, too late.
Barry Hawkins had too much experience for Jordan Brown who ws playing at the QF stage for the first time.
Tom ford has always been a heavy scorer but unfortunately rarely plays to his full potential on the big stage. Yesterday though he was too strong for young Joe O’Connor.
Jack made the best start against Bingham and managed to keep ahead when Stuat fought back.
World number one Judd Trump is through to the semi-final stage for the eighth time this season, after battling past Asian number one Ding Junhui 5-3 at the BildBet German Masters.
The Ace in the Pack has already notched up three titles so far in the campaign, having won the English Open, Northern Ireland Open and the World Grand Prix. His eight semi-final appearances have come from just nine tournaments so far.
Defeat for Ding extends his run without silverware. China’s 14-time ranking event winner has now gone over a year without capturing a title, his last coming at the 2019 UK Championship.
After Trump took the opener, he produced a phenomenal shot during a break of 101, which saw him claim the second to move 2-0 ahead. Trump came in and out of baulk with check side to develop the final red, in a shot which commentator David Hendon described as “criminally good”.
A break of 79 saw Trump go 3-0 up, before Ding got his first frame on the board with a run of 83. He then fired in a contribution of 93 to pull within one at 3-2.
They traded frames, as Trump edged 4-3 ahead. The Bristol cueman then got over the line in a hard fought and decisive eighth frame, which lasted 36 minutes, to emerge a 5-3 victor.
Trump said: “It was solid, but there were quite a lot of mistakes with my safety. That is something that has happened quite a lot in this tournament. I think that is something that is down to not having a lot of match practice and being a bit rusty.
“It has been incredible consistency (to reach eight semi-finals), that is something I’m proud of. I have worked very hard this season and I’ve practised very hard for this tournament as well. With what is going on, I’ve moved back to Bristol in the mix of things. I’m proud of how I’ve dealt with it and it has been an excellent season which will be very tough to top.
“The shot in the second frame is one I love playing. I love the exhibition shots at the end of the frame. For that to come off is one in a thousand. It is literally that hard. As soon as I hit it, I knew I hit it well.”
Trump will face Barry Hawkins in the last four tomorrow afternoon, after Hawkins produced a 5-1 demolition of Northern Ireland’s Jordan Brown.
World number 18 Hawkins hasn’t appeared in the last four of a ranking event since the 2019 World Grand Prix, when he lost to Trump. However, in the five semi-final meetings between the pair, he has won three of them.
Jack Lisowski booked his place in the semi-finals for the second consecutive event, beating Stuart Bingham 5-3 to reach the last four of the BildBet German Masters.
Lisowski, 29, was runner-up to Judd Trump at the World Grand Prix before Christmas. However, he was forced to sit out the Masters earlier this month, after returning a positive test for Covid-19 before his first round match.
World number 14 Lisowski is yet to claim a maiden ranking title, but his last four clash with Tom Ford tomorrow evening will be the seventh ranking semi-final of his career. The talented Lisowski has been a ranking event runner-up on four occasions.
Lisowski came flying out of the blocks this evening, breaks of 88 and 80 helped him to a 3-0 advantage early on.
Bingham hit back with runs of 81 and 101 to pull within a frame at 3-2. In a crucial sixth frame, Lisowski missed a straightforward frame ball blue. However, he fluked the snooker and eventually potted the pink to move 4-2 up.
Bingham then pulled within one, but it was Lisowski who claimed a 32-minute eighth frame to seal a semi-final spot.
Lisowski said: “I started really well. Then Stuart got back into it and I was twitching at the end. I felt like I had a bit of luck at the right time today. I managed to get over the line and into the semis.
“I have been starting the matches well. Maybe I need to reset at the interval and start again. Sometimes I am a bit too relaxed when I get back out there. It’s not nice when you get a lead and it starts slipping away, so it is extra sweet to win.
“Looking at the match sheets, Tom looks like he is playing as well as anyone in this tournament. I am going to have my work cut out. I have to play my A game to beat him. I think it will be good. He is a fast and attacking player, so lets have it.”
World number 29 Ford clinched his place in the semi-finals with a 5-1 defeat of fellow Leicester cueman Joe O’Connor.
Ford composed breaks of 57, 62 and 134 on his way to victory today. So far this week he’s made 13 breaks over 50, including four centuries.
Tomorrow’s meeting with Lisowski will be the sixth ranking event semi-final of Ford’s career. He’ll be seeking to reach the final for just a second time, after his 2016 Paul Hunter Classic final loss to Mark Selby.
I think that Jack will be too strong for Tom on the main television table, and over a slightly longer format.
I hope that Barry Hawkins will further improve his SF record over Judd Trump.
I know that Judd is a fantastic player, I can’t help admire some of the shots he plays, but I definitely can’t warm to him and this article by Hector Nunns – who I trust for his integrity – isn’t doing anything to endear me to Judd.
Judd Trump slams “joke” exclusion from Snooker’s Masters and says Covid test “inaccurate”
Snooker’s world number one Judd Trump was unable to participate in this month’s Masters tournament after he tested positive for Covid-19 – but The Juddernaut has hit back at the exclusion and his test
Judd Trump claims that his exclusion from this month’s Masters was “a joke” – and down to an “inaccurate” Covid test.
But the world No1’s allegations have been swiftly challenged by governing body World Snooker Tour, and also healthcare company Cavendish that performed the testing.
The Juddernaut, along with Jack Lisowski, tested positive for coronavirus and in accordance with strict protocols had to withdraw.
He had been a hot favourite to win the £250,000 first prize, but ended up not even receiving the usual £15,000 guaranteed minimum for the top 16 players having qualified.
Trump is unhappy with his enforced withdrawal from The Masters earlier this month
WST officials were angry about Trump’s comments, after adhering to strict government guidelines to keep the snooker show going and the players earning.
Trump, questioning the legitimacy of his procedure, said: “I don’t even think the test is accurate. So, to pull you out of the tournament and also take away prize money is a bit of a joke.
“I didn’t think I had it and felt absolutely fine, and it is an inaccurate test that determines it.
“When I was first told I thought it was a joke, and I asked them if they were joking, but they said there was nothing they could do. On another day it could have come back that I could have played.
“I had a few symptoms after Christmas but nothing I haven’t had before, I thought it was a cold so I didn’t even bother getting checked.
“Jack Lisowski got checked after the World Grand Prix final, it came back inconclusive. He got tested again, it came back negative. So he didn’t have it, he comes to the Masters, and he’s positive.
Trump isn’t the only one to have had issues with Covid-19 tests – Jack Lisowski has had problems too
“You will always get some strange goings on. As for my trip to Dubai, if I had it then I already had it. I have had worse colds. Do I go and get checked because I have a runny nose?
“It is ridiculous. In any other year it would just be dismissed as a cold. And also World Snooker shouldn’t be taking the prize money away.
“Doing that when it is nobody’s fault is very strange whoever made that decision up, I think that’s the only tournament where it has been done. I know Jack has questioned it.”
But WST chairman Barry Hearn dismissed Trump’s views. He said: “I was disappointed with his comments. Judd is a great champion and a huge asset to our game.
“But that comes with responsibilities, including understanding issues like Covid that affect not only snooker, but the whole nation.
“I am sure in hindsight when he reads them through he will realise how ridiculous and ludicrous they were. He is not a doctor, and certainly has no idea whether a test is accurate or not.
Snooker supremo Barry Hearn has hit back and dismissed Trump’s criticism
“He can’t back that comment up, because he isn’t qualified. We have gone almost further than any other sport and that is one of the reasons the government have allowed us to continue.
“Without that regime Judd and others Would be sitting at home. So if you do fail a test, you can’t question the validity of it when you aren’t qualified to give that opinion.
“I think he probably caught it in Dubai, and really this is about him being prickly about losing any prize money from the Masters, and he feels aggrieved.”
A WST spokesperson said: “The Covid-19 tests carried out on players have the approval of Public Health England and local authorities, as well as our Chief Medical Officer.
“And they are the same as applied by other leading sporting bodies, for example the English Football League.
“Both Judd and Jack (Lisowski) received a PCR test, which is the gold standard of Covid-19 testing, and the complete process was performed by healthcare professionals.
“Players are in a privileged position to be able to continue to play and compete at tournaments.
“Everyone on site at our events, including the vast majority of players, understand that we must follow the guidelines in order to maintain a safe environment.
“And the rules on prize money were clear and only players who competed in the Masters were eligible.”
Dr Akbar de Medici, medical director for Cavendish Health, said: “We are not able to discuss individual cases.
“But we are very experienced in Covid-19 testing and have been providing ‘gold standard’ PCR tests since March 2020 on behalf of professional sports and entertainment organizations and directly for individuals.
“The swabs are processed by one of the UK’s leading labs with bases within several of London’s leading NHS hospitals and subject to very stringent standards as you would expect.
“If a client is dissatisfied with a result we are always happy to perform a confirmatory test.
“But no request has been received, and in any event guidelines do not allow for any positive test result to be overturned.”
Where do I start?
Judd has no ground to claim that the test is inaccurate. He’s not qualified to back such clasims.
WST does every effort to make sure that the players can play and earn a living. They said they trusted the players to act responsibly. Judd did not do that.
Going to Dubai to party in restaurants and bars with a large group of young people, was certainly not “acting responsibly” under the cureent circumstances.
If, like he claims, he had symptoms before traveling, he should certainly NOT have traveled at all.
And this coming after his unsympathetic comments about Anthony Hamilton is … pathetic.
Well he was right about Hamilton. Maybe he is not right about the test BUT to say that he shouldn’t have traveled to Dubai is so virtue-signalling and hypocritical. If he can go to Dubai he should as long as he gets a test afterwards.
No he was WRONG about Hamilton. The decision to admit as much as 300 persons in a some 900 seats aerna, witout testing, was taken only after the qualifiers were underway. Hamilton did not know that when he entered. Add to ii that the seats at the Crucible are very close to each other and that the arena relies on air conditioning all the time. The very fact that the decision to admit crowds was reverted after just ine day vindicated Hamilton decision. And it was WRONG for Judd to go to Dubai, party in bars and restaurants, when all recommandations – WHO, govt, and WST – were to avoid unecessary travel and huge gatherings. He is the World nr 1, as such he has additional responsobilities and he certainly didn’t fulfill them.
As for the virtue-signaling bit … I don’t care how people live their lives, as long as 1. their actions don’t endanger others and 2. they accept the consequences of their actions for good or bad. Judd traveling to Dubai having symptoms was irresponsible in regards to 1. and, obviously, his reaction shows that he isn’t ready for 2.
the last time I already convinced you that you were wrong about the timeline and the decision was known before the qualifiers started. I wrote this here the last time, not going to try and prove it to you again. seems like you might as well rename this the Anthony Hamilton fanblog.
also, yes, you are virtue-signalling about Dubai. obviously, it is now evident that the lockdown is pretty much endless (in Israel they have vaccinated a hell lot of people and infections keep rising), so if you are young and rich you should grab every opportunity to party. good for him.
You can’t prove it because it’s not true. Before the qualifiers what was known was that there POSSIBLY could be a limited crowd. It was NOT known that it would be as much as 300, 1 in 3 seat in a very tight arena, it was NOT known that there would be no tests. Actually most people expected that there definitely would be some sort of test, if only a temperature check. The final number and the actual measures put into in place were only decided during the qualifiers. And it WAS a high risk, which it why the “experiment” was stopped after only one day.
not like anybody every wanted to see Hamilton play so doesn’t matter eventually
Everyone in this country was told not to travel for anything “nonessential” and for the life of mine I can’t see anything “essential” in the trip to Dubai. I’m certainly not against some “disobedience”, neither do I agree with everything this government orders. But here are consequences to our choices and actions and Trump made the trip for partying and tested positive. He had the chance to ask for a second test as the agency says, but he did not. Lisowski, who did not even go to Dubai, is not complaining. And it is partly because of people who don’t abide by the rules that we still cannot go out to have a beer or see our families.
Maybe Trump also thinks that if you are young and rich you should grab every opportunity to party, preferably far away. Maybe this is one of the reasons why I find it impossible to relate to him or find in him something likeable.
I don’t like him at all but at least he is no one’s lapdog, he’s got his own life and he should be left alone
I don’t know who is a lapdog of anyone among the people we talk about and I think Trump was bloody well, left alone, he tested positive, did not play the Masters and that was the end of it until he felt it necessary to complain and not just about that he could not play, but also about not getting money, which coming from him is rich (pun intended). But then he does have the inclination to voice his complaints about things (he is not appreciated enough, Ronnie does not need the money so he should not play the Worlds etc).
well Murphy is a lapdog of World Snooker for instance. Trump sometimes has a different opinion, just like Ronnie. that’s good
This is not about agreeing with WST or not. It’s about a selfish, irresponsible behaviour and then moaning about the consequences.
World number one Judd Trump is through to the semi-final stage for the eighth time this season, after battling past Asian number one Ding Junhui 5-3 at the BildBet German Masters.
Jack Lisowski booked his place in the semi-finals for the second consecutive event, beating Stuart Bingham 5-3 to reach the last four of the BildBet German Masters.
Ronnie O'Sullivan 
Well he was right about Hamilton. Maybe he is not right about the test BUT to say that he shouldn’t have traveled to Dubai is so virtue-signalling and hypocritical. If he can go to Dubai he should as long as he gets a test afterwards.
No he was WRONG about Hamilton. The decision to admit as much as 300 persons in a some 900 seats aerna, witout testing, was taken only after the qualifiers were underway. Hamilton did not know that when he entered. Add to ii that the seats at the Crucible are very close to each other and that the arena relies on air conditioning all the time. The very fact that the decision to admit crowds was reverted after just ine day vindicated Hamilton decision. And it was WRONG for Judd to go to Dubai, party in bars and restaurants, when all recommandations – WHO, govt, and WST – were to avoid unecessary travel and huge gatherings. He is the World nr 1, as such he has additional responsobilities and he certainly didn’t fulfill them.
As for the virtue-signaling bit … I don’t care how people live their lives, as long as 1. their actions don’t endanger others and 2. they accept the consequences of their actions for good or bad. Judd traveling to Dubai having symptoms was irresponsible in regards to 1. and, obviously, his reaction shows that he isn’t ready for 2.
the last time I already convinced you that you were wrong about the timeline and the decision was known before the qualifiers started. I wrote this here the last time, not going to try and prove it to you again. seems like you might as well rename this the Anthony Hamilton fanblog.
also, yes, you are virtue-signalling about Dubai. obviously, it is now evident that the lockdown is pretty much endless (in Israel they have vaccinated a hell lot of people and infections keep rising), so if you are young and rich you should grab every opportunity to party. good for him.
You can’t prove it because it’s not true. Before the qualifiers what was known was that there POSSIBLY could be a limited crowd. It was NOT known that it would be as much as 300, 1 in 3 seat in a very tight arena, it was NOT known that there would be no tests. Actually most people expected that there definitely would be some sort of test, if only a temperature check. The final number and the actual measures put into in place were only decided during the qualifiers. And it WAS a high risk, which it why the “experiment” was stopped after only one day.
not like anybody every wanted to see Hamilton play so doesn’t matter eventually
Everyone in this country was told not to travel for anything “nonessential” and for the life of mine I can’t see anything “essential” in the trip to Dubai. I’m certainly not against some “disobedience”, neither do I agree with everything this government orders. But here are consequences to our choices and actions and Trump made the trip for partying and tested positive. He had the chance to ask for a second test as the agency says, but he did not. Lisowski, who did not even go to Dubai, is not complaining. And it is partly because of people who don’t abide by the rules that we still cannot go out to have a beer or see our families.
Maybe Trump also thinks that if you are young and rich you should grab every opportunity to party, preferably far away. Maybe this is one of the reasons why I find it impossible to relate to him or find in him something likeable.
I don’t like him at all but at least he is no one’s lapdog, he’s got his own life and he should be left alone
I don’t know who is a lapdog of anyone among the people we talk about and I think Trump was bloody well, left alone, he tested positive, did not play the Masters and that was the end of it until he felt it necessary to complain and not just about that he could not play, but also about not getting money, which coming from him is rich (pun intended). But then he does have the inclination to voice his complaints about things (he is not appreciated enough, Ronnie does not need the money so he should not play the Worlds etc).
well Murphy is a lapdog of World Snooker for instance. Trump sometimes has a different opinion, just like Ronnie. that’s good
This is not about agreeing with WST or not. It’s about a selfish, irresponsible behaviour and then moaning about the consequences.