Judd Trump to lose snooker world number one spot as £500,000 event is axed

JUDD TRUMP was determined to show the rest of the world he is the number one potter – before he officially loses the status. The Juddernaut is expected to drop down the WST snooker rankings this month because he cannot defend the £500,000 against his name following the axing of a mega-money Saudi event. Judd Trump is the 2026 Shanghai Masters champion Credit: Getty Trump, 36, defeated last year’s champion Kyren Wilson in the showpiece final Credit: Getty It may happen once the Wuhan Open is concluded in the coming weeks. Regaining the Shanghai Masters – he thumped Kyren Wilson 11-6 in Sunday’s final – earned him a decent £210,000 and was a first trophy since the German Masters in February. Sign up for the Sport newsletter Thank you! But this is an invitational tournament, with no rankings points available, and his demotion after two years at the summit is likely. Zhao Xintong and Neil Robertson are ready to pounce, especially if they perform at the newly-introduced China Open in Taiyuan and then in Wuhan, while Trump flops. Trump, 36, said: “It was a good win. A tough game compared to the other ones. “The table played a bit more difficult in the final, and that’s why the standard wasn’t quite as good. “Kyren has beaten me in the last few finals. So it was nice to start the season in that kind of manner and get one over him. “You want to show that you’re still the best in the world and it’s important to be winning big events like this. Most read in Snooker BEST FREE BETS AND BETTING SIGN UP OFFERS Trump was in excellent form in China this week Credit: Alamy “It has been three months since I played anyone. It was a little bit of the unknown. “It will be tricky with Saudi no longer being on the calendar, which I won two years ago. The points are coming off. “It’ll be an uphill struggle to keep the number one spot but hopefully come the end of the year, in the mid-season, I’ll make sure I am back there. “I love being number one. But if you are going to drop down the rankings a bit, it’s always nice to win the Shanghai Masters. “The last time I won in Shanghai I had a great season after that. And it was important I got off to a great start here.” The China Open – which returns to the calendar – has a main prize of £250,000 and Wuhan Open’s top cheque of £175,000, so if Trump lands either of those titles he may not move downward. Wilson – who scored two century breaks – was dethroned as champion, but despite the snooker loss, he enjoyed the time over in China with his wife and two kids. The Warrior, a two-time champion in the city, said: “A very disappointing result. Crazy to be in my hotel room at the interval and 7-3 behind. “I felt it could have been easily 5-5. You cannot give somebody like Judd Trump so many easy chances to come back and take the lead. He deserved his win. “A fantastic champion and he smelt blood when I was struggling and in survival mode. “For my children, this is their first time in Shanghai and they don’t want to go home – they want to stay. It has always been a very special event.” Comment now