Judd Trump Stuns with 5-4 Comeback at Saudi Arabia Masters

Judd Trump staged a remarkable comeback at the inaugural Saudi Arabia Masters recovering from a 4-0 deficit to beat China’s Wu Yize 5-4 and advance to the last 16. Trump, who had been on a 28-match unbeaten streak in best-of-11 frames since December 2022 faced the possibility of an early exit. However, he turned the match around by winning five consecutive frames, much to his relief.

“I was looking at flights home!” Judd Trump joked to Eurosport after the match. “I’m very, very happy with that. That was one of my best wins in the manner of digging in and [having] self-belief.” In contrast, seven-time world champion Ronnie O’Sullivan progressed with ease, defeating Lei Peifan 5-1. Despite his dominant performance, O’Sullivan expressed dissatisfaction with his game.

He mentioned that a lack of feel over the past two years has made it hard to enjoy playing. At times, he even resorted to playing left-handed to ease some of the pressure. Other notable results included former world champion Stuart Bingham’s narrow 5-4 victory over Ding Junhui and Neil Robertson’s 5-3 win against Mark Selby showcasing an impressive performance.

However, the tournament saw early exits for several prominent players. World number two Mark Allen lost 5-1 to Xiao Guodong, John Higgins fell 5-2 to Jimmy Robertson and Ali Carter and Barry Hawkins also faced defeats. The Saudi Arabia Masters, dubbed the sport’s ‘fourth major’ by organizers boasts a £2.3 million prize fund and a £500,000 winner’s cheque making it the largest snooker event held outside the UK.