Neal Foulds snooker column: Judd Trump on the path to greatness as big two continue to dominate

The World Open made a welcome return to the snooker calendar last week and once again provided us with a very good tournament, and a successful defending champion in Judd Trump who might just be a better player now than he’s even been.

I feel duty bound the qualify that statement because, after all, Judd won six events in a single season in the 2019-2020 campaign. That golden run was achieved through his brilliance over a number of months, whereas more recently he’s needed to draw upon his wealth of experience, a big heart and an innate winning mentality that sets him apart from many of his peers.

Furthermore, Judd has really found the formula for these 128-player events, and it was trademark Trump in Yushan. It wasn’t particularly easy in the early rounds, and he needed a fair chunk of luck to pull away from Kyren Wilson in their match, but he did what he had to do and when the weekend arrives, he becomes a different animal and so very hard to beat.

It was a big effort from Judd who had to win seven matches in just a week, but there wasn’t a hint of fatigue by the time he reached the final and it was another one-sided affair with Ding Junhui brushed aside 10-4.

We haven’t actually seen a deciding frame in a major final since the World Grand Prix in January 2023 when Mark Allen got the better of Judd himself. We’ve had some very good ones since then – the World Championship final last year was a terrific match – but perhaps that classic is saving itself for the Crucible in early May.

Momentum with Trump ahead of World Championship

With more than an eye now on the World Championship, Judd will return to the Crucible very close to the top of most people’s shortlist for the big one.

He’s got a similar level of momentum as he had had back in 2020, before the pandemic struck and the event was pushed back to August. Perhaps the delay cost Judd that year, but his chance is plainly obvious four years on.

Plenty has been said about where Judd sits on the list of all-time greats, but in terms of ranking titles he’s now level with Steve Davis in fourth place having won his 28th on Sunday. That is elite company and he deserves to be there.

The fact he’s only won one World Championship rankles with many, and that’s fair comment, but I don’t think anyone can seriously doubt that Judd is a great player. Another world title would put such arguments to bed, and I’m not sure he’ll stop there. He might end up with three of four Crucible wins by the time he’s finished – he’s that good.

I suppose the one negative hanging over him for the rest of the season is that he hasn’t beaten Ronnie O’Sullivan since 2020, losing their last five meetings now, having built up a relatively strong record against Ronnie prior to that.

You wouldn’t think Judd would lose too much sleep over that, but with defending champion Luca Brecel the number one seed at the Crucible, it’s looking increasingly likely that Judd and Ronnie will be seeded second and third in Sheffield, meaning they will be berthed in the same side of the draw. I don’t think either man will be thrilled about that prospect, but Ronnie has clearly has the edge on recent form.

The pair have dominated the snooker landscape for a number of months now. The two Triple Crowns this season have been won by Ronnie, along many of the most valuable prizes on offer at home and abroad, while Judd has just kept winning when Ronnie has either underperformed or not entered at all.

Allen has won a couple of big events and is rarely easy to beat nowadays, while Zhang Anda landed a huge tournament in the International Championship and has reached two more finals. We shouldn't forget Gary Wilson, either, winner of two Home Nations events in Scotland and Wales – no easy task when you consider the often brutal nature of that format.

All that said, when it has come to the really big days, think the UK Championship, the Masters, and those important and hugely-valuable events overseas, it’s very much been the Ronnie and Judd show and it's hard to escape that.

Robertson makes welcome return to form

We’ve been crying out for some of the other big names to come to the party, and as such, it was pleasing to see Neil Robertson back playing well in China and enjoying a fine run to the semi-finals.

After a wretched run of form which might have left him doubting himself for the first time in a while, Robertson did himself proud last week, looking every inch the player of old and seemingly working his way back to his very best.

I thought he was a shade unlucky to lose to Ding in the last four when just about everything conspired against him. He looked the better player for much of that match and losing a deciding frame from 50-odd in front was particularly cruel. Nevertheless, it was a huge step in the right direction for Australian.

It wasn’t enough to move Robertson back into the top 16, meaning he will have to come through qualifying for the Crucible. That won’t be easy, history tells us that, but it also reminds us of when Ding had to do the same in 2016 before he breezed through and eventually reached the final.

A former world champion, winning in 2010, and arguably the best player in the world just a couple of years ago, I wonder if there has been a better player in the modern era to play in qualifying for the World Championship? I already mentioned Ding, but he’s never been world champion, and nor were Shaun Murphy and Terry Griffiths when they had to do it.

Robertson’s game is clearly still there and at the time of writing, he looks like going off as fifth choice in the market, despite needing to qualify for the first round proper. That’s a measure of Robertson’s class and pedigree, and nobody would want to play him in the first round.

Page on the right track with career best

A word, too, on Jackson Page who enjoyed a fine week in Yushan until running out of steam against Judd. He didn’t play well in that match, but he most certainly did when beating both John Higgins and Mark Selby and he looks to be finally fulfilling the considerable promise he has always shown.

Jackson comes from good stock down in Wales and Mark Williams has been raving about him for a while. He’s still only a young man and his best days are ahead of him. I think he’ll kick on now, with his tour card thankfully secured.

More immediately, we’ve got the Mixed Doubles coming up at the weekend, where that man Robertson and Mink Nutcharut will be defending their crown, before the Tour Championship gets under way on Monday.

There is a slight change in format for the Tour Championship this year, with the field increased from eight to 12, so it will be interesting to see how that plays out. One thing that is always true of this event is that if you’ve made it into the final field, you’re there on merit having earned your place through the weight of your performances over the course of the season.

That means that it’s the best of the best locking horns in two-session matches all week, and snooker fans can’t really ask for much more than that.

Will it be the Ronnie and Judd show yet again? Don’t bet against it.