Judd Trump has dismissed suggestions there is a wide open field at the World Championship this year and insists no more than three players can rival him for the title.
There has been a tendency for Trump’s fellow cuemen at the Crucible to suggest most of the players left in the tournament can still win it.
But Trump does not buy that, and after making a winning start to his campaign by seeing off Dominic Dale 10-5 in the first round he stressed the pool of realistic contenders remained very small.
“I know a lot of people are saying that anyone can win it but in my opinion there’s only three or four who can,” Trump said.
“If that certain amount of players play well then one of them is going to win it.”
Given he fancies his own chances, the group of players Trump is looking at as serious competition might comprise Mark Selby, Shaun Murphy and Ronnie O’Sullivan with Neil Robertston now also out of the tournament.
Trump, 23, certainly looked the part against Dale, sartorially and in his heavy scoring.
The 2011 World Championship runner-up made a fashion statement as he donned his favourite pair of £900 studded designer slip-on shoes, and never looked in danger of joining the big-name casualties that have been fallen at an alarming rate.
Resuming with a 6-3 lead, he fired 104, 73 and 61 to scupper any hopes 41-year-old Dale had of fighting back.
Dale said of Trump: “I like his flamboyance. His shoes? They win matches on their own don’t they?”
Elsewhere, Ding Junhui made comfortable progress, as China’s big hope began positively with a 10-5 win over Scotland’s Alan McManus while Hong Kong’s Marco Fu, a losing semi-finalist in 2006, almost threw away a handsome 9-4 lead against two-time runner-up Matthew Stevens but survived a big scare to win 10-7.
Trump awaits Fu next.
Meanwhile, no.1 Selby completed a 10-4 victory over Crucible first-timer Matthew Selt on Wednes-day, with breaks of 71, 51, 55 and 91 seeing him tee up a second round tussle with Barry Hawkins.
Selby is bidding to become just the fourth player to win snooker’s ‘triple crown’ of UK Championship, Masters and World Championship in the same season, having already landed the first two of those.
The 29-year-old from Leicester said: “ Winning the World Championship is a big ask.
“I’ve won tournaments with my B game in the past but I don’t think that’s possible at the World Championship.
“It’s such a long tournament and you need to have sessions where you go up another gear.”
Round One: R. Milkins bt N. Robertson 10-8.