Welsh Open snooker: Judd Trump avoids shock defeat against Duane Jones
Judd Trump sneaked through to round two of the Welsh Open after coming through a final-frame decider against Duane Jones.
Trump, who lost 9-8 to Stuart Bingham in last year's final, was heading for the exit when world number 113 Jones was just six pots away from clearing up for a 4-3 win but he missed the yellow and paid the price.
He told www.worldsnooker.com: "It was a battle – Duane played well in his home tournament. He is a solid player and he has improved. I missed too many balls during the match and got unlucky a few times.
"My results this season have been mixed, I have been inconsistent. Mentally maybe I am not as strong as some of the other players because I get spells where I don’t want to play and I struggle to get up for some events. But I like this one because I feel close to home, I get a lot of support and I have always wanted to win it. I was gutted to lose in the final last year."
Jackson Page, a 16-year-old amateur, beat Sean O’Sullivan 4-3 and will now face defending champion Bingham, who defeated Chen Zhe 4-1.
Graeme Dott claimed a 4-0 win over Sanderson Lam and will now play Ronnie O’Sullivan, who was handed a bye because his opponent Robin Hull withdrew for medical reasons.
China’s Yan Bingtao came from 3-1 down to beat veteran Jimmy White 4-3, firing 69, 58 and 110 in the last three frames.
Ding Junhui eased to a 4-0 win over Hammad Miah with a top break of 89 while Neil Robertson made an 88 in a 4-1 defeat of Mark Davis.
Masters champion Mark Allen recovered a 2-1 deficit to beat Cao Yupeng 4-2 thanks to runs of 119, 72 and 56.
In the last match of the evening to finish, World Champion Mark Selby looked in fine form as he beat Christopher Keogan 4-2 with top breaks of 143 and 100.
Monday's results
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MONDAY FEBRUARY 26
Morning session (1000 GMT)
First Round (Best of 7 frames)
- Darren Morgan 3-4 Rhydian Richards (Pre Qualifier)
- Jackson Page 4-3 Sean O'Sullivan
- Scott Donaldson 4-2 Fergal O'Brien
- Fang Xiongman 4-3 Yuan SiJun
- Chen Zifan 4-1 Zhou Yuelong
- Barry Hawkins 4-1 Niu Zhuang
- Jamie Curtis-Barrett 1-4 Ian Burns
- Dominic Dale 4-0 Chris Totten
Afternoon session (1300 GMT)
First Round (Best of 7 frames)
- Stuart Bingham 4-1 Chen Zhe
- Wang Yuchen 1-4 Peter Ebdon
- Li Yuan 1-4 Ricky Walden
- Li Hang v Liam Highfield (walkover win to Highfield)
- Xiao Guodong 0-4 Chris Wakelin
- Andrew Higginson 4-3 Ashley Hugill
- Zhang Yong 1-4 James Wattana
- Ali Carter 4-0 Rhys Clark
- Ryan Day 2-4 Kurt Dunham
- Jimmy White 3-4 Yan Bingtao
- Rod Lawler 0-4 Tom Ford
- Tian Pengfei 1-4 Akani Songsermsawad
- Ding Junhui 4-0 Hammad Miah
- Craig Steadman 4-1 David John
- Sanderson Lam 0-4 Graeme Dott
- Daniel Wells 4-1 Lee Walker
Evening session (1900 GMT)
First Round (Best of 7 frames)
- Anthony Hamilton 4-3 David Gilbert
- Michael Holt 4-2 Elliott Slessor
- Hossein Vafaei 2-4 Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
- Judd Trump 4-3 Duane Jones
- Mark Allen 4-2 Cao Yupeng
- Mark Selby 4-2 Christopher Keogan
- Neil Robertson 4-1 Mark Davis
- Ian Preece 4-2 Zhao Xintong