The battle for the world number one spot heated up on day one of the International Championship in Tianjin, with wins for all four contenders; Ronnie O’Sullivan, Luca Brecel, Judd Trump and Mark Allen.
Current incumbent and seven-time World Champion Ronnie O’Sullivan scored a 6-1 win over 1997 Crucible king Ken Doherty to ensure his progression to the last 64.
The Rocket has already landed silverware on Chinese soil this season, after beating Brecel 11-9 in a thrilling Shanghai Masters final. However, with that event being an invitational and exits in the last 16 and the quarter-finals at the English Open and Wuhan Open respectively, his place at the summit of the rankings is under threat.
O’Sullivan was in red-hot form this evening and crafted breaks of 112, 81, 66, 78 and 68 on his way to victory. Next up for the 39-time ranking event winner is a second round meeting with Mark Joyce.
Trump has forced his way into contention for the top spot after sensationally registering three consecutive ranking event wins at the English Open, Wuhan Open and the Northern Ireland Open. The Ace in the Pack extended his winning streak to 21 matches with a 6-0 whitewash defeat of Chinese 12-year-old prospect Wang Xinzhong.
His recent tournament win in Belfast saw him join Ray Reardon, Steve Davis, Stephen Hendry and Ding Junhui as the only players to win three consecutive ranking events. Trump would become only the second (after Hendry) to win four in a row by taking the title this week. He already has a strong history in this event and is defending champion having won the last staging back in 2019.
Runs of 116, 109, 67 and 89 helped Trump to this evening’s win. He knows he must make at least the quarter-finals to stand a chance of becoming world number one and will face Michael White in the last 64. Afterwards, Trump admitted he is near to his best form.
“The whole season has been on a knife-edge. There have been opportunities for Luca Brecel and Mark Allen already. Ronnie has missed a couple of events but this is massive tournament. The International Championship is the event that has taken the crown as the biggest one in China,” said 26-time ranking event winner Trump.
“I think I am playing to a very similar level to when I won six events in the 2019/20 season. It is always hard to say you are playing better or worse, but to do something I’ve never done before and only four people have done by winning three consecutive events is special.”
Last season’s Player of the Year Allen kept his hopes alive by coming from 3-1 down to beat Oliver Lines 6-3.
The Pistol is currently ranked fourth in the world after winning titles at last season’s Northern Ireland Open, UK Championship and World Grand Prix. However, he needs to win the event this week to overhaul O’Sullivan. The Antrim cueman top scored with 137 this morning and now plays Thepchaiya Un-Nooh, who beat Matthew Selt 6-5.
Allen said: “Judd has got himself well into the conversation having won the last three ranking tournaments. He wasn’t on anyone’s lips at the start of the season. It shows what can happen in the game. It is a good story for you guys, but we just have to concentrate on going out there and winning matches. If I win matches and tournaments, then the ranking will take care of itself.”
World Champion Brecel earned his slot in the next round courtesy of a 6-2 win over Daniel Womersley.
The Belgian currently occupies second place in the rankings and must reach at least the last 16 to go top. He made breaks of 79, 58 and 76 during this afternoon’s encounter and now plays Mark Davis.
This season’s European Masters winner Barry Hawkins put on a sensational display to whitewash Tian Pengfei 6-0. The Hawk soared with contributions of 123, 114, 50, 139 and 67 in what was a break building masterclass.
China’s 14-time ranking event winner Ding Junhui surged to a 6-1 win over Ian Burns, while Stuart Bingham edged past Matthew Stevens 6-5.
