Trump Wins Black Ball Thriller
Judd Trump is through to the last four of the International Championship in Daqing after overcoming Shaun Murphy on the very final ball of their quarter-final clash.
The win sees Trump continue his remarkable run of form in 2016/17. It will be his third consecutive semi-final appearance.
After Trump claimed the opener, Murphy stole the second on the final black – foreshadowing the last ball drama which lay ahead.
The high quality affair then moved up a gear in terms of standard. Trump went 3-2 ahead with runs of 102 and 100. Murphy, nicknamed the Magician, then claimed three in a row thanks to contributions of 77, 75 and 70. It put him one away from victory at 5-3. However, Trump wasn’t going to back down and continued to attack. He made breaks of 74 and 119 to force a final frame.
The decider was tighter than the rest of the match and exceeded 45 minutes in frame time. Neither player could produce a telling contribution and it came down to the colours. Murphy had Trump on the ropes after he laid a precarious snooker on the green. After missing once, Trump had to make a hit the second time to avoid needing snookers. He managed the hit and eventually created a great opportunity to win the match. When trying to get position on the black, the white caught the knuckles of the left middle and a safety battle ensued. Eventually Murphy missed a middle range shot to the top right corner and left the ball over the pocket to allow Trump the easiest of match balls.
“It was quite a stressful game really. I was unlucky at the start but he didn’t miss a ball from 3-2 down. I did well to get to 5-5,” said Trump. “In the back of my mind I know that I’ve not lost a deciding frame this year. That kind of helps your mindset.”
Ding Junhui delighted the home crowd to secure a semi-final showdown with Trump. He did trail John Higgins 2-0, but won six frames in a row to blow away the defending champion. The Chinese superstar made breaks of 81, 56, 104, 130 and 63 to cruise to a 6-2 win.
Ding said: “I played great today. John started well but I fought back very hard. I was taking my chances and made a lot of breaks. It was a surprise as John Higgins has so much experience. I’m playing well.”