January 16th 2025.
Ronnie O'Sullivan has his sights set on a potential Judd Trump vs Mark Selby final at Alexandra Palace. The snooker legend believes that Trump is the clear favorite to win the Masters tournament, but sees Selby as his closest competition. However, O'Sullivan notes that Selby may struggle with the belief that he can beat Trump, which could ultimately hinder his chances.
The quarter-final line-up has been finalized, with Trump set to face Ding Junhui and Selby set to take on Mark Allen. Other exciting matches include Shaun Murphy vs Neil Robertson and Kyren Wilson vs Luca Brecel. O'Sullivan, who unfortunately had to withdraw from the tournament due to personal reasons, acknowledges that Trump deserves to be the favorite in every event he enters, including the Masters.
O'Sullivan was highly impressed by Selby's dominant performance in his opening round against Ali Carter, which ended in a 6-1 victory. However, the seven-time world champion believes that Selby may struggle when facing Trump, drawing a comparison to Michael van Gerwen's difficulties against Luke Littler in the recent World Darts Championship final. O'Sullivan explains, "I think if Mark can mentally prepare himself to face Judd, he will have a great chance. But he needs to truly believe that he can beat Judd, and I'm not sure he has that belief just yet."
Despite his doubts about Selby's belief, O'Sullivan had nothing but praise for his old rival and his performance against Carter. "I don't think I've seen Mark play this well in six or seven years," he said. "His safety is impeccable and his scoring is top-notch. He has a wide range of shots at his disposal, making it incredibly difficult for his opponents." O'Sullivan acknowledges that it would take a top-class performance from someone like Judd Trump to put Selby under pressure and potentially defeat him.
With Selby and Trump on opposite sides of the draw, a potential final between the two would be a highly anticipated and thrilling match. They have only met once before in the Masters, with Trump emerging victorious 6-2 on his way to winning the title in 2019. However, Trump has won their last two encounters, at the 2020 Grand Prix and 2020 UK Championship. Selby's last win over Trump came in 2019 at the Shanghai Masters, where he secured a convincing 6-1 victory in the quarter-finals.
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