Judd Trump recovers from almighty scare after failed 147 attempt to beat Liu Hongyu at English Open
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Updated 16/09/2024 at 19:02 GMT+1
Judd Trump clinched victory against 20-year-old Liu Hongyu in his opening English Open tie, beating the youngster 4-3 in an exciting battle. Trump led the contest by two frames at one stage, but Hongyu forced a decider. “I struggled really, his standard wasn’t very good at the start either and it kind of put me off," Trump told Eurosport. “I knew in the last frame to not give him anything easy."
‘What a winner of a shot’ – Trump nails long red to seal hard-fought victory over Liu
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Judd Trump edged China's Liu Hongyu 4-3 in a dramatic battle at the English Open in Brentwood on Monday to seal his place in the last 32 - but it wasn't without a fright.
The world No. 1, who claimed the inaugural Saudi Arabia Masters crown last week, looked to be cruising into the next round when he took a 3-1 lead and moved to within a frame of victory.
But Trump left Hongyu in the balls after a failed 147 attempt, and the Chinese pegged him back to level the scores in a spirited performance, before the 2019 world champion did just enough to overcome his opponent and claim the victory.
Trump will play either Matthew Selt or Ricky Walden in an all-English last-32 tie for a spot in the last 16.
“It was a tricky game,” Trump told Eurosport after the match. “Whenever you’re starting in the first round of a tournament after such a high in the last tournament, it’s always difficult.
“I struggled really, his standard wasn’t very good at the start either and it kind of put me off a little bit. When I was going for the 147, he made a great clearance and came back into it.
“I knew in the last frame to not give him anything easy, and in the end, played a good last frame.”
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‘Look how the reds have opened up’ – Trump splits pack wide open with audacious plant
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Trump edged a patchy opening frame before the world No. 65 hit back in frame two to pull level.
Trump drilled in a 98 break in the third frame – falling just short of a century – to restore his lead in dominant fashion and lay down a marker in the third-round clash.
The top seed moved to within a frame of victory when he sealed the fourth 70-16 and was on course for a maximum break as he looked to get the job done, but fell short in his efforts when he missed a black to the bottom left pocket.
With Trump on 65, it left Hongyu with enough points on the table to close the deficit to 3-2, which he did so with a clinical break of 68 to force a sixth frame.
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‘Not sure what he played there’ – Wild swipe leaves reds scattered and puts Trump in trouble
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Trump was in danger of elimination when Hongyu pulled level once more to take the match to an exciting decider, but Trump recovered to clinch it with a break of 57 to advance.
Selby Through after victory over Hill
Fellow heavyweight Mark Selby will join Trump in the next round after his 4-2 victory over 22-year-old Irish player Aaron Hill earlier on Monday.
Hill struck a match-high 131 break in the fifth frame to close the deficit to one and stay in the match after trailing by three, but breaks of 119, 94, 78 and 69 from the excellent Selby were enough for the win.
Elsewhere, Ali Carter made light work of Ian Burns in a 4-0 whitewash victory, while David Gilbert sealed a tight 4-3 win over Michael Holt.
Zhang Anda edged past Mark Davis 4-3, while Zak Surety cruised to a 4-0 win over Noppon Saengkham.
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