Judd Trump reckons he is in Shaun Murphy’s head before Crucible clash

Judd Trump expects his brilliant recent record against Shaun Murphy to be on his opponent’s mind ahead of their eye-catching second round clash at the Crucible.

Trump and Murphy were two of the standout performers of the opening round, with the former beating Zhou Yuelong and the latter Daniel Wells, both by the same 10-4 scoreline.

The winners of this season’s UK Championship and Masters will now meet as early as the last 16 in Sheffield, clashing for the fourth time at the Crucible, with Murphy 2-1 ahead in that specific record.

However, it is Trump who has got the better of their recent meetings, winning the last seven matches they have played against each other.

The world number one did not dismiss the idea that Murphy would be thinking about those defeats, suggesting it would be on the Magician’s mind before they shake hands on Sunday.

‘I think it’ll be in his mind,’ Trump said of his string of wins over Murphy. ‘I think there’s players recently I’ve had great records against. John Higgins, Mark Selby as well in ranking events, I’ve not lost for I don’t even know how long, but a long time.

‘There’s certain players I feel comfortable playing and Shaun is one of them but I’ve also lost many times to him in the past.

‘In the back of your head you think the more times you beat someone, the law of averages eventually you’re going to lose. So there’s that on the other hand.

‘For me it’s just about going out there and if I can get in front, get off to quick starts, put the long balls in then it puts Shaun under a lot of pressure because he knows what I’m capable of in those few games we’ve played this season.’

Trump is confident, but that is no real slight on Murphy, who he has great respect for.

‘He looked superb in his first game,’ said Trump of his second round opponent. ‘I think he’s had one of his best performances of his career at the Masters.

‘After that he’s dropped off a little bit, but he looked very composed in the first game, scored extremely heavy. I’ll have to play somewhere near where I did today [against Zhou] to have a chance.’

Murphy is indeed aware that he has come up short against Trump a fair bit recently, but is looking forward to the challenge, 18 years since they first played at the Crucible on Trump’s debut in 2007.

‘I remember hearing about him when he was a junior. I played him on his debut here,’ Murphy said of a 10-6 win in ’07. ‘We’ve had some really good games here.

‘He’s given me a good hiding quite a few times in recent years but he is the world number one so there’s no shame in losing to Judd. I think it’ll be a great match.

‘I’m looking forward to it. Any chance to play the world number one at the Crucible, it doesn’t get better than that.’

Both men are one-time world champions, with Murphy having been to three more finals and Trump two.

Asked if Trump’s solitary World Championship win helps illustrate just how tough it is to land this title, the Magician said: ‘I think Judd’s got time on his side, he’s world number one, he’s got everything lined up. I just hope he doesn’t play too well against me.’

The second round clash is played over three sessions, on Sunday morning and evening, before finishing on Monday afternoon.