Relishing the life of a globe-trotting snooker player, Judd Trump is in one of his favourite locations this week and started the defence of his BetVictor Northern Ireland Open title with a 4-0 win over Ishpreet Singh Chadha.
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The Waterfront Hall in Belfast has been a particularly happy hunting ground for the world number one - he has lifted the trophy four times in the last six years. He needed just 49 minutes to whitewash today's opponent with top breaks of 72, 65 and 112.
More than any other player, Trump has embraced the opportunities presented by snooker's global circuit. Originally from Bristol, he now lives in Hong Kong and was delighted to hear the recent announcement that the World Grand Prix will be staged there in March. He also has a practice base in Dubai where he spent last week working on his game.
"It's an exciting time to be playing," said Trump, who has already banked over £840,000 in prize money this season. "Basing myself more in Dubai and Hong Kong, I can play to a high standard when we have events in those time zones. It's more inspiring than living back in the UK and I love travelling, going to new places and playing in front of different audiences.
"The announcement about Hong Kong was one of the best we have had for a long time and hopefully there are more on the horizon. It will be my first home tournament as we've never had one in Bristol! I have never been recognised as much as I am in Hong Kong. People there love snooker, they proved that at the tournament in 2022 when there was an incredible atmosphere. It's such a nice place to be, it has some of the best skylines in the world, the best food, the friendliest people and they are very knowledgeable about snooker. Everyone will be trying even harder than usual to get in top 32."
Looking ahead to the rest of this week, Trump added: "It was easy to get up for this event. Certain venues seem to be made for snooker. Anyone who has played in the semis or final at the Waterfront knows how special it is. It's similar to Alexandra Palace or the Tempodrom in terms of the size of the crowd and the way people react. I thrive on that atmosphere with people enjoying themselves. It helps me show off and play my best shots, hopefully I can channel my inner Alex Higgins with a few specials!"
His opponent in the last 32 will be friend Matthew Selt, who top scored with 78 in a 4-1 win over Lyu Haotian. Stan Moody came from 2-0 down to beat Ryan Day 4-3, knocking in breaks of 108, 105 and 67.
Crucible runner-up Jak Jones saw off Alexander Ursenbacher 4-0 while Zhou Yuelong came from 3-1 down to beat Dominic Dale 4-3, making a 111 in the decider. Home favourite Jordan Brown suffered a 4-2 reverse against Robert Milkins.