On January 14, 2025, the Snooker Masters continued with all five members of the "80s Tigers" advancing to the quarter-finals without any dropouts. At the same time, Ding Junhui's second-round opponent was revealed as Judd Trump, who defeated Barry Hawkins 6-1 to compete against the Chinese star for a semi-final spot, setting the stage for another peak confrontation.
The 35-year-old Trump is the cream of the crop among post-80s players, ranked No. 1 in the world. He has won 30 ranking titles and 5 major titles (1 World Championship, 2 UK Championships, 2 Masters). Although his major tournament results are not as impressive as those of Selby and Robertson, in terms of championship numbers, Trump is undoubtedly the top player of his peers. Moreover, he is currently at the peak of his career, winning titles every year.
His opponent is the 45-year-old Hawkins, ranked No. 12 in the world, who has won four ranking titles in his career, with the best result in the three major events being runner-up. As a frequent semi-finalist, Hawkins' results are very stable; it's just that he always falls short at critical moments. Last year, Trump and Hawkins competed for the UK Championship title, with Trump winning the final 10-8. Looking at their playing styles, Hawkins is quite balanced without any obvious weaknesses.
After the match began, both sides made mistakes in the first game, with no state and low long-range success rates. Trump took the lead several times and started with a score of 59-14. In the second game, Hawkins missed a shot, and Trump completed the super points with a score of 80-0. In the third game, Trump scored a single rod of 59 points and won another game with a score of 67-0. In the fourth game, Hawkins only scored 33 points before interrupting his attack, while Trump scored a single rod of 60 points, winning four games in a row directly.
After the halftime break, Hawkins' hand feel remained low, and in the fifth game, Trump scored a single rod of 56 points before interrupting his attack. However, due to an opponent's mistake wasting the opportunity, Trump won another game with a score of 70-12, taking the match point first. In the sixth game, Hawkins returned with a single rod of 70 points. In the seventh game, Trump seized the opportunity and ended the game with a single rod of 112 points, eventually eliminating Hawkins 6-1, which can be said to be a great victory in his debut.
The result of this game met expectations, but the score was somewhat surprising. Trump was actually not in his best form, and the main problem was that Hawkins played too poorly, failing to perform at the level expected of a top player. Whenever there was an opportunity to take the lead, it was difficult to achieve a single-rod victory.
Next comes the competition between the "80s Tigers." Trump advances to the quarter-finals again to compete with Ding Junhui for a promotion spot. Judging from their past head-to-head records, Trump does not have a significant advantage, but his overall abilities are evident. It will be challenging for Ding Junhui to defeat him, at least requiring the same touch he had when he defeated Mark Williams, avoiding mistakes and not giving his opponent too many opportunities. Let's see who will come out on top this time.