Masters 2020: Judd Trump knocked out by Shaun Murphy, John Higgins beats Barry Hawkins
-
Published
-
comments
Masters 2020: Shaun Murphy beats Judd Trump - best shots
|
2020 Dafabet Masters on the BBC |
|---|
|
Dates: 12-19 January Venue: Alexandra Palace, London |
|
Coverage: Watch live across BBC Two, BBC iPlayer, BBC Red Button, Connected TV, the BBC Sport website and mobile app. |
Defending champion Judd Trump was knocked out in the Masters first round with a 6-3 defeat by Shaun Murphy.
World number one Trump, 30, made three century breaks to take a 3-2 lead over Murphy, the 2015 Masters winner.
But Murphy edged the next three frames, including breaks of 77 and 52, before easing through the final frame to set up a quarter-final meeting with number 15 seed Joe Perry.
Later, two-time Masters champion John Higgins beat Barry Hawkins 6-1.
Scotland's Higgins will play Ali Carter in the quarter-finals. The 44-year-old four-time world champion eased into a three-frame lead over Hawkins with breaks of 57, 53 and 74 before extending that lead further to 5-0.
Hawkins, 40, pulled back a frame with a century break but Higgins wrapped up the win with a 59 break in the seventh.
'6-3 was flattering for Murphy' - Trump
Speaking to BBC Sport after his defeat by Murphy, Trump said: "He just dug in.
"I didn't really do that much wrong. It's frustrating really because I felt like I was in control of the game and he was just hanging on.
"It felt like I didn't play that bad and 6-3 was maybe a little flattering for him."
Trump's break of 119 in the fifth frame was his 678th career century, moving him to fourth in the all-time list.
"Every time I play Shaun, it's always a good game," he added. "He played well today. He didn't really miss that many easy balls.
"He had a game plan to go out there and not miss anything easy and let me make the mistakes, and he executed that gameplan perfectly.
"It was always going to be a tough draw. He's a very good player, he's won every single tournament there is to win, but it's obviously disappointing not to have got through the first game."
Murphy said: "It felt like the turning point didn't come until quite late for me.
"He was unplayable for the first few frames but when we turned the corner. There were just a couple of mistakes here and there and I got away with a couple of shots in the last frame. You need those things on your side to win."