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Wales Online
01-05-2025
- Sport
- Wales Online
'Legend of the game' – Judd Trump's comments about Mark Williams say it all
'Legend of the game' – Judd Trump's comments about Mark Williams say it all Crucible king Judd Trump will face Mark 'The Welsh Potting Machine' Williams in the semi-finals of the 2025 World Snooker Championship - and he has revealed precisely what he thinks of his foe Mark Williams has been lauded as a "legend" ahead of his World Snooker Championship semi-final against Judd Trump (Image: George Wood, Getty Images ) Snooker sensation Judd Trump has generously applauded Mark Williams in the build-up to their much-anticipated semi-final clash at the 2025 World Snooker Championship. The pair are set for a monumental encounter, which gets underway on Thursday evening. Trump advanced to the last four following a striking comeback against Luca Brecel, where he came from behind to take the last six frames and win 13-8. Yet he now comes up against a three-time world champion in Williams, who showcased his resilience by narrowly defeating John Higgins in the quarter-finals. 'The Welsh Potting Machine' triumphed over fellow icon Higgins in an agonisingly close battle. And with it came his first semi-final appearance since 2022 - when it was Trump who ended his journey. When asked about their imminent duel after his win against Brecel, 35-year-old Trump was full of reverence for Cwm-born Williams. And the tournament favourite was only too aware of their shared history in Sheffield when speaking to BBC Sport (via the Daily Express). "[The] last time I was in the semi-final, I think I played him," said 'The Ace in the Pack'. "It was an epic then, he obviously had an epic against John Higgins - it's such a slog, this tournament. "Still a long way to go, but Mark is a legend of the game. I think whoever won out of John and Mark, I was gonna be happy to play if I got through. . .turns out it's Mark, and it's going to be a great game." Article continues below Trump boasts a dominant 23-11 win-loss record against Williams (Image: Getty ) It's not the first time Trump has praised his Welsh rival, who has won only 11 of their 34 matchups to date. One such memorable clash occurred in the final of last summer's inaugural Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters, where Trump narrowly secured a 10-9 win. Despite showing formidable skill with three century breaks, 50-year-old Williams had to be content with the £200,000 runner-up cheque. Yet Trump was commendably gracious after the match and still showered praise on the Gwent native. "It just shows what a champion he is, what a break he's made in the last frame there," he told TNT Sports, candidly confessing he "didn't deserve to win" the £500,000 grand prize. "Half a million quid, 62 behind, two reds there. Congratulations to him." Regardless of how the semis pan out, Trump is set to bag at least £200,000 from the World Championship. Half of that is for making it to the final four, and an additional £100,000 for a season tally of 100 century breaks, nine of which have been achieved in Sheffield alone. Williams' 13-12 semi-final triumph over John Higgins will go down in the Crucible history books (Image: Getty ) Article continues below Williams returned the compliment with his own glowing appraisal of Trump ahead of their Crucible clash: "All he's missing on his CV probably is another World Championship and if he gets another one of them, he has to be one of the greatest of all time." He went on to clarify he hopes this isn't the year that materialises before highlighting the magnitude of his century of centuries: "Oh yeah, not this year! There's no other player who had a sniff of winning that bonus £100,000. Only him because he's relentless." Despite that comment, Williams will hope to repay the favour from 2022 and cease Trump's rolling form this week. However, he'll have to beat the form player on the planet in order to do so.
Telegraph
26-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Britain doesn't deserve to host the World Snooker Championships
Whoever wins snooker's coveted 2025 Halo World Championship on May 5, there is one clear loser. And that's Sheffield. I caught some of the early rounds this week, charmed as ever by the commentary team of Davis and Parrot, Hendry and Doherty and mesmerised by the skill, focus and bravura of the players. But I was also struck by the sight on TV of the best players in the world cueing in a single arena that is Sheffield's Crucible Theatre, where they, when seated between bouts, are within breathing space of each other, where a single audience sits around two tables and with what looks like a cardboard divide between match play. I could swear I saw it wobble at one point, maybe as a late-coming spectator entered the room and the draught of a windy afternoon in Sheffield blew in. Then, as play ensues, in some vital moment – Judd Trump eyeing up a crafty cannon to dispatch the hopes of Zhou Yuelong perhaps – the still of concentration is shattered by an outbreak of applause. From the crowd at the next-door table. The only advantage of this being, surely, for the lucky sods who have seats in the middle and can watch both games. Otherwise, it strikes me as an absolute shambles. Organising body World Snooker Ltd is treating this modern, international sport, with a global audience, like a match between two non-league clubs in Deptford. It's barely a step forward from the 1970s when we watched the game in our cottage in Oxfordshire in black and white with the sound turned down because we'd lost the volume knob on the TV set. As seven-times winner Ronnie O'Sullivan himself said in an interview before last year's tournament: 'I know at the Crucible you get nice tea there, you might get lasagne if the guys are cooking. But that's about it.' And this was just a few months after he lashed out at that other famous snooker venue, Alexandra Palace, saying: 'I find it disgusting. Everywhere is dirty. It's cold. It's freezing. I have to wear my coat everywhere. You go through car parks. There are bins. Honestly, it just makes me feel ill.' Imagine Andy Murray saying such things about the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club or Joe Root of Lords. Yet this is the state of our snooker venues. And from an international observer, it might feel par for the course. If there are rats festering amongst the uncollected bins of Birmingham, it's completely rational that the only thing that separates the tables of two major, international snooker games is a sliver of cardboard. No wonder Saudi Arabia is sniffing around the game. It wants the golf, it has a bit of tennis, it gets some major bouts of boxing, and it has the FIFA 2034 World Cup in the bag, so why not some proper snooker? The TV rights would give the country the cosy PR it craves. And to sweeten the deal, it can be held in the Green Halls in the capital Riyadh where it already holds the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters, a venue described by former Irish pro Ken Doherty as 'fantastic, nicely spaced out, with plenty of room to practice'. 'The facilities are quite amazing and to hear that this place is purpose-built just for snooker alone is quite incredible,' he adds. Which begs the question as to why the powers-that-be appear to be doing nothing to revamp The Crucible and prevent Barry Hearn – whose company, Matchroom Sport, runs darts and snooker events – from taking the World Snooker Championship to the UAE when the Crucible's rights to hold the tournament expire in 2027. 'The clock is ticking,' Hearne said this week. And with just two years to go, it doesn't look like Sheffield Council, who provide additional funding to the Crucible's owners, Sheffield Theatres, has ambitions to improve the venue aside from adding a few urinals. The theatre can only hold 980 fans, so revenue opportunities from ticket sales are limited, and while Hearne, like so many snooker fans, would like to retain the heritage of snooker in Sheffield, he wants a slicker venue. To which those council members will say, 'Of course, Barry, but who's going to pay for it?' For that is the gloomy malaise of Britain. Crumbling, unambitious and with that shrug of the shoulders that says, 'How can we build fancy stadiums when we can't even fill our potholes?' This is a long-term malady, not just the fault of Labour, but acutely worse now as the Government tries to force out the non-doms who might have been willing to put their names to a new venue and bends over backwards to deter risky entrepreneurs. The Prime Minister revels, even, in the idea that things are going to get worse. We may not have the weather, but we need to be a little more cocksure about the utter fabulousness of the ingenuity, culture and history of our green and pleasant land.
Daily Mirror
24-04-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Judd Trump hits back at Stephen Hendry claim with firm response - 'I'm very happy'
Judd Trump is currently playing to win his second World Championship and triumphing at the Crucible would, according to Stephen Henry, see him remembered as a 'great' Judd Trump has hit back after snooker legend Stephen Hendry claimed that he needed to win at least one more World Championship to cement his legacy. Trump, 35, beat John Higgins in 2019 to earn his first Crucible crown but hasn't got his hands on the trophy since. The current world No.1 has made an impressive start to this year's World Championship at the famous Crucible Theatre in Sheffield. Trump powered into the second round with a convincing 10-4 victory over Zhou Yuelong on Wednesday to continue his excellent form this season. Having already won the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters, Shanghai Masters and his fifth Triple Crown event at the UK Championship, Trump is the bookmakers' favourite to go all the way. Ahead of his first-round match, BBC pundits Hendry and Mark Allen agreed that Trump needs to win the World Championship to be remembered as a 'great'. "In my opinion, he does [need to win another world title]," seven-time world champion Hendry said. "I don't think that's maybe Judd's opinion. Whether he's trying to deflect the pressure or not, he says he wants to win as many titles as possible. "It doesn't have to be the world; it could be any title. He could win 100 titles and only win one world championship; he's got to be considered a great. But in my opinion, you've got to win here more than once." Allen agreed by saying: "He's won so much in recent years, he'll be disappointed looking back on his career if he's only won one world title, given how many other tournaments he's won. He's got the ability to win four or five of these, easy, and I think if he doesn't, he'll be disappointed." Trump isn't having it, though, insisting that winning twice at the Crucible won't change how he feels about his career. "No, I'd be happy with the money and stuff I've earned already. I'd hopefully be playing golf every day and living in Dubai in a massive mansion. I'm not gonna be disappointed," the 35-year-old told SportsBoom. "But no, I don't put any pressure on myself. I'm very happy with my career record in Triple Crowns. I know how difficult they can be and on a couple occasions in the UK and the Worlds I could have been say here on three or more. There's only fine margins I've lost, and to a lot of the greatest players of all time in those finals." Up next for Trump, who now lives in Dubai, is a clash with Shaun Murphy, the reigning Masters champion. Not only is a place in the quarter-finals up for grabs for Trump but also £100,00. The six-figure sum will go to the first player who makes 100 century breaks during the 2024-25 season and after Trump made five against Yuelong, he's within two of the prize. "I know that I am close," he smilingly admitted to TNT Sports. "I would be lying if I said it was not on my mind. It would be nice to get it out of the way early. I don't want to be losing and desperately trying to make centuries and everything is going wrong and everyone is laughing at me as I'm one short."
