UK Championship snooker LIVE: Score and updates as Judd Trump faces Neil Robertson in blockbuster clash
World No 1 Trump and 24-time ranking event winner Robertson meet in York for a mouthwatering best-of-11 encounter
Two of snooker’s biggest stars will meet in the first round of the UK Championship this afternoon as Judd Trump and Neil Robertson square off in a mouthwatering best-of-11 clash in York.
The pair have won 53 ranking titles between them during their trophy-laden careers to date and Trump is currently world No 1 after winning a remarkable seven tournaments in the past 15 months.
The one minor blip on the 35-year-old Englishman’s incredible CV is the fact he ‘only’ has four victories at snooker’s triple crown events (the World Championship, UK Championship and Masters) and he is trying to win this tournament at the Barbican Centre for just the second time, after his 2011 success.
Meanwhile, Robertson is a three-time UK champion but had to come through qualifying to reach York, having dropped out of the world’s top 16. That does mean the 42-year-old Australian is nicely tuned up to face the world No 1, who he beat 6-4 in the Champion of Champions event two weeks ago to avenge a loss at the Saudi Arabia Masters earlier this season.
Follow all the action below with our live blog:
UK Championship snooker - Trump v Robertson head to head
Let’s turn our attention back to today’s match between Judd Trump and Neil Robertson. The pair have squared off 27 times (excluding Championship League matches) and Trump holds the slight edge with 15 wins to 12.
Robertson won their most recent encounter at the Champion of Champions two weeks ago, when he triumphed 6-4, which avenged a 6-3 loss at the Saudi Arabia Masters earlier in the summer.
They actually met in the final of the 2020 UK Championship, amid the supporter-less, Covid bubble of Milton Keynes and Robertson won an epic 10-9 on the final pink after 1am.
Ronnie O’Sullivan: ‘I wish I was more like Hendry and Davis’
Ronnie O’Sullivan’s most recent World Championship title, won so emotionally at the iconic Crucible Theatre in 2022, more or less ended the debate surrounding snooker’s greatest player of all time. By claiming the world title for a seventh time, O’Sullivan equalled Stephen Hendry’s modern-era record, having already surpassed the Scot for most ranking titles (currently 41 and counting) and becoming the first man to make 1,000 century breaks in professional competition.
Throw in a captivating, swashbuckling, seemingly effortless style of play that means The Rocket’s reputation as a sporting genius has long since transcended snooker’s narrow confines, and GOAT status is undisputed.
Yet as those who have followed his rollercoaster career, or watched his candid, raw 2023 documentary The Edge of Everything will be painfully aware, the almost endless trophies and triumphs haven’t always brought him happiness or satisfaction. Many a whitewash victory against an overmatched opponent has been followed by O’Sullivan slating his own performance for not quite reaching the impossibly perfect standards he demands of himself.
So perhaps it should come as no surprise that, in an exclusive interview with The Independent, he reveals that he yearns to be more like those who came before him.
Ronnie O’Sullivan: ‘I wish I was more like Hendry and Davis’
Exclusive: The greatest snooker player of all time tells Luke Baker why he is still envious of his rivals, whether it’s possible to stop the decline he feels he’s in and where the sport’s next star is coming from
Mark Allen depressed with his form after scrappy first-round win in York
A downbeat Mark Allen labelled his own form as “depressing” after beating Jackson Page 6-4 in the first round of the UK Championship.
Allen sealed the win with an impressive clearance from the green, but managed a highest break of just 56 in a low-quality contest in York.
“It’s actually quite depressing to be honest, the way I’m playing at the minute,” the world number three told the BBC. “It’s not much fun. I’m trying so hard and I just can’t play. I’ve always backed myself under pressure but there’s something technical that’s not right because I’m missing so many easy balls.
“It’s hard to take any positives out of that, other than the fact that I got six frames. I’ve been trying so hard the last few months and it’s really getting me down because things are really good at the minute in my life and snooker’s just awful. Absolutely awful.”
Kyren Wilson overcomes headache to thrash Stephen Maguire at UK Championship
World champion Kyren Wilson shrugged off a headache and concerns over the speed of the tables to sweep past Stephen Maguire 6-0 in the first round of the UK Championship.
Wilson dominated what had been a scrappy afternoon session at the Barbican Centre in York to take a 4-0 lead – with neither player able to build a half-century break.
After the interval Wilson – who has won two ranking titles already this season – finally found some rhythm as a run of 71 put him within a frame of victory.
After Maguire, who won the 2004 UK Championship title, missed another chance to build a response, Wilson, already 27 in front, took the opportunity to clear up to the pink.
Kyren Wilson overcomes headache to thrash Stephen Maguire at UK Championship
Neither player was able to build a half-century break before the mid-session interval
UK Championship snooker - Trump v Robertson
Standing in Trump’s way is Neil Robertson. The Australian has been similarly prolific throughout his career, racking up 24 ranking event titles to sit seventh on the all-time list (Trump is fourth).
The 42-year-old recently dropped out of the world’s top 16 meaning he had to qualify for York, which he did so by squeaking past Oli Lines 6-5 before downing Matthew Stevens 6-2. That match sharpness could come in handy.
Robertson is a three-time UK champion and even as a qualifier, is more than capable of getting on a run and winning the event. He ended a 29-month title drought at the recent English Open, so is back towards his best.
UK Championship snooker - Trump v Robertson
This should be an absolute cracker this afternoon. In one corner, we have Judd Trump who has been snooker’s most consistent force over the past couple of seasons.
He’s currently world No 1, and hundreds of thousands of pounds ahead of his rivals on that list due to racking up seven tournament victories in the last 15 months.
Of course, the knock on Trump will always be that he doesn’t win enough of ‘the big ones’. He ‘only’ has four victories at snooker’s triple crown events (the World Championship, UK Championship and Masters) and he is trying to win the UK Champs here in York this week for just the second time, after his 2011 success.
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