Judd Trump has reached the Shenzhen Open semi-finals after delivering a 5-0 win over Mark Selby, producing five half-centuries in a one-sided quarter-final between the two Englishmen.
Trump compiled breaks of 79, 77, 63, 52 and 51 as he denied Selby a frame and moved into the last four of the ranking event. The sequence meant Trump made a half-century in every frame. SnookerHQ reported that the victory was Trump’s 77th career ranking-event semi-final.
The result sets up a semi-final against Wu Yize, the world champion, after Wu came through a deciding-frame contest with Shaun Murphy. Trump’s route through Selby was markedly more straightforward, but the next match brings together a player who has been consistently reaching the latter stages of events and an opponent who has again shown his ability to decide close matches.
Trump’s scoring left Selby no way back
The BBC reported that Trump’s five successive breaks above 50 underpinned the 5-0 scoreline. The world number two was not simply reliant on scoring, however: the broadcaster said his cue-ball control and safety play helped him retain command of the contest.
Selby did have opportunities in the first, third and fourth frames, according to the BBC, but was unable to turn them into a platform for a recovery. Trump converted the match into a 5-0 win, with the BBC highlighting his cue-ball control and safety play.
SnookerHQ described the meeting as a contest between two of the season’s most in-form players, but Trump won 5-0. The 5-0 margin also continued a run in which Trump has reached at least the quarter-finals in four successive events.
Trump told the World Snooker Tour that he feels a greater competitive edge once tournaments reach the quarter-final stage. He said that the early rounds are often about finding a level close to his best, whereas the prospect of the trophy becomes more tangible from the last eight onwards.
He also said that semi-finals have a different feel because they are normally played on a single table, with more attention focused on the players and the finishing line clearer. His performance against Selby offered substantial support for that assessment, with Trump combining regular scoring visits with the control required to limit Selby’s chances.
Wu Yize awaits after Murphy decider
Wu will be Trump’s opponent after beating Shaun Murphy 5-4 in the other quarter-final. The BBC reported that the match repeated the deciding-frame finish of their World Championship final earlier in the year, which Wu also won.
Murphy made breaks of 104 and 98 before the interval, but the BBC said missed straightforward pots in other frames allowed Wu to remain level. Murphy later moved 3-2 ahead with a break of 68, only for Wu to respond with breaks of 94 and 121 to take the lead.
Murphy forced a decider after Wu missed a crucial brown in the eighth frame. In the final frame, however, Wu capitalised on a Murphy error and made a break of 117 to complete the victory.
That result gives Trump a semi-final against the reigning world champion rather than a rematch with Murphy. SnookerHQ reported that Wu is appearing in a ranking-event semi-final for the first time since winning the World Championship at the Crucible Theatre in May.
Trump has recent experience of beating Wu at this stage. According to SnookerHQ, their most recent meeting came in the Shanghai Masters semi-finals, where Trump prevailed on his way to winning the invitational title. That result is useful background rather than a predictor: Wu’s victory over Murphy showed that he arrives in the last four having handled a high-pressure finish of his own.
For Trump, the Selby win has supplied both a semi-final place and a strong statement of form. A five-frame sweep over an opponent who had chances in several frames leaves him with scoring rhythm and match control behind him as the Shenzhen Open approaches its final weekend.