We had a dramatic afternoon yesterday at Alexandra Palace as Judd Trump beat Kyren Wilson in a deciding frame. Both layers dominated the match in spells of several frames. Kyren, I feel, was the better player overall but, of course only the final result matters.

TRUMP BEATS WILSON WITH LAST GASP CLEARANCE (WST report)

Defending champion Judd Trump narrowly avoided a first round exit at the MrQ Masters, making a tremendous clearance in the deciding frame to beat Kyren Wilson 6-5.

Wilson came from 5-3 down to 5-5 then had a golden opportunity to knock out the number one seed, but ran out of position in the decider on a break of 51. Trump rose to the occasion by clearing the table with 65 to set up a quarter-final with Ali Carter.

Trump first won this event in 2019 and doubled his tally of Masters crowns last year, and he rode his luck, beating Ryan Day 6-5 and Barry Hawkins 6-5 in the first two rounds as his opponents failed to take match-winning chances. It was a similar story today as he was well below his best, but found an extra gear when it mattered most. 

He has been the player of the season so far, winning three ranking titles in October, and is now looking to become only the seventh player to win the Masters on more than two occasions.  

Breaks of 65 and 76 gave Wilson the first two frames. Trump had a chance to take the third from 32-0 behind, but missed a difficult pot on the penultimate red on 58. Wilson punished him by converting a clever cross double to a centre pocket and clearing for 3-0. Runs of 52, 101 and 83 helped Trump battle back to 3-3.

Frames seven and eight both came down to the colours, and on both occasions Wilson botched a safety shot on the green, handing his opponent the chance to go 5-3 up. Wilson raised his hopes of a fight-back by coming from 35-4 down to win frame nine. In the tenth, Trump led 53-8 when he was unlucky to run out of position, and that proved costly as Wilson later converted a fantastic long red to a baulk corner to set up an excellent 58 clearance for 5-5. 

Wilson had first chance in the decider and made 51 before playing a loose positional shot then missing a tricky red to centre, which he had played a shot-to-nothing, but in fact left a narrow gap which allowed Trump to pot the same red. The Bristol cueman went on to clear the table to reach the quarter-finals of this event for the eighth time..

Trump said: “It was a strange match, it wasn’t the highest standard. I was fighting at 3-0 down. At 5-4 I played a bad positional shot and Kyren made an unbelievable clearance. Then he got control of the decider and I thought he would finish it off. I felt I was on my way home. He took a bit of a risk on the red he went for, but he was unlucky to leave the gap. 

“I felt nervy from the start and my cue ball control wasn’t good. Under pressure in the clearance at the end, I shortened my backswing, it was more of a ‘stab’ but that helped with my position. I felt I wasn’t going to miss unless I had a big twitch. 

“My game is good, I just wasn’t relaxed today and I struggled. At this event I just don’t want to go out in the first round. It was amazing to play in front of these fans.”

Wilson added: “In the last frame (on 51) I tried to play a soft cannon, maybe I should have played a different shot. Then I went for the red to middle and didn’t think I could leave it if I missed. Every credit to Judd, he made a great clearance and showed what a champion he is. I am gutted because this event is the future of snooker, I had my two boys here today and hopefully they learned a lot just by watching the game.” 

I would like to fully understand what Kyren means when he said that this event is the future of snooker. Yes, the Masters is a big celebration of the sport, with just one table and the best players in front of a big crowd, in a big city with outstanding media coverage. Yes, this is what any sport needs for its promotion, but it can’t be done with 128 players at the venue obviously and the young talents also need to be showcased. I know that I may sound like a broken record, but this could be done provided that WST walks away from the money list, and from a rigid ranking system altogether, and adopts a rating system that will provide the required flexibility.

The evening match went as I expected. The solid Barry Hawkins beat an erratic Neil Robertson

HAWK FENDS OFF ROBERTSON FIGHTBACK (WST report)

Barry Hawkins saw off stoic resistance from Neil Robertson to win 6-3 and book a MrQ Masters quarter-final showdown with Ronnie O’Sullivan at Alexandra Palace. 

Victory hands Hawkins revenge for his 10-4 defeat at the hands of Australia’s Robertson in the 2022 Masters final. It sets up a repeat of the 2016 final with O’Sullivan, which he lost 10-1. 

The Londoner has enjoyed a brilliant campaign so far, having already registered silverware at the European Masters last August. Hawkins scored a brilliant 9-6 win over player of the season so far Judd Trump to capture the title and win ranking silverware for the first time since 2017. 

By contrast Robertson has endured one of his worst seasons in years and finds his place in the world’s top 16 under threat. He currently sits in 32nd position in the provisional end of season rankings. The 2010 World Champion hasn’t been past the last 32 in ranking competition so far this term. 

The opening frames this evening were fiercely contested and lasted over an hour, before the pair emerged level at 1-1. Hawkins halted the fragmented nature of the game in the third with a break of 96 to take the lead, before adding the fourth to make it 3-1 at the mid-session.

When play resumed world number 15 Hawkins made it 4-1, but at that point 23-time ranking event winner Robertson summoned a comeback charge. Back-to-back century runs of 117 and 110 saw him surge back into contention at 4-3.

However, that rally was soon snuffed out by the Hawk, who composed contributions of 69 and 57 to get himself over the line and into the last eight.

Hawkins said: “It didn’t come easily tonight and everything was a bit of a struggle. I tried my hardest and that is all you can do out there really. He responded well to make back-to-back centuries and go 4-3. It was important to win that next frame, I was pleased to get that one.

“The occasion out there and the crowd gets you bang up for it and gets you more focussed. I enjoy playing out there a bit more than other smaller events.

“It is going to be unbelievable. Any time you play Ronnie is a big occasion, but even more so in this place. It is going to be electric and I’m really looking forward to it.”

It’s been a trend all season for Robertson. He’s still making centuries but can’t win closer frames. The trip to Australia, and meeting his family, doesn’t seem to have changed anything when it comes to his game and his form.

Barry Hawkins is never easy to beat. Ronnie has a good record against him but he will really need to be on his game to win this one.