On January 16, 2025, according to sports journalist Abby, on Tuesday, in the first round of the Masters, Xiao Te easily defeated Barry Hawkins 6-1, in excellent form, and this two-time champion sent a message to his opponents.
After defeating Hawkins 6-1 in the Masters, Trump said he "likes winning too many games and doesn't want to miss too many games."
On Tuesday, Xiao Te was in great form, leading Hawkins 5-0. He defeated Hawkins in the final of the UK Championship last December. The 35-year-old contributed breaks of 56, 59, and 60 to establish his lead and sealed the victory with a century break of 112 after his opponent scored 70 points.
On Friday, Xiao Te will face Ding Junhui in the quarter-finals, and he is making great strides without any signs of slowing down. After the match, he joined the commentary team consisting of BBC host Hazel Irvine, snooker legends Parrott and Murphy, greeted them, and chatted about the round.
Murphy asked Xiao Te how he prepared for the Masters during the holiday period, and Xiao Te admitted that after winning the UK Championship title, he couldn't stay away from the table for too long.
He said: "I have four or five exhibition matches, and I did take four or five days off during the New Year. But after that, I held exhibition matches in China where I participated, then I went to Dubai, and practiced for four or five days on my way back. So, I always stay connected (continuous practice), even though I only allowed myself to skip one event after winning the UK Championship title."
He added: "I love winning too much and don't want to miss too many games."
This is a warning to the Masters' opponents, indicating that Trump is confident in his ability to balance practice and relaxation time. This snooker star is confident in his ability to win the championship for the third time in his career. Chinese star Ding Junhui will face Trump on Friday, and Northern Irish star Mark Allen also successfully advanced to the top 8 in his match against four-time world champion Mark Selby on Thursday.
It is worth mentioning whether the iron law that Ding Junhui always reaches the finals after beating Williams can be broken by the stable world number one Judd Trump? Let's wait and see.