World Snooker Championship: Trump tackles Fu, Murphy plays Perry

World Snooker Championship third-favourite Judd Trump (9/2 with Coral) faces old adversary Marco Fu in the second round of this year’s Crucible classic, having lost two of his last four to the Hong Kong cueman.

Bristol native Trump recorded 10 breaks over 50 to come through his opener in Sheffield against qualifier Stuart Carrington 10-6. Fu, meanwhile, made eight knocks of more than a half century when beating Jimmy Robertson by the same scoreline.

Punters should expect a close contest between two of the green baize sport’s top players, and Trump triumphed against Fu at this stage of the World Championship two years ago. To do so again, ‘the Juddernaut’ is a strong odds-on 1/4 favourite, while another 13-7 Crucible victory against Fu is an 8/1 shot.

With only five places separating this pair in snooker’s world rankings, Fu cannot be counted out at 3/1 to win and this would hardly be that much of an upset. It’s 7/1 that his match with Trump goes the distance to a decider, and 17/10 for the score to be 2-2 after four frames.

Also in action on day nine at the Crucible, 13/2 fourth-favourite Shaun Murphy takes on the man seeded just below him in ‘Gentleman’ Joe Perry.

Rotherham native Murphy, nicknamed ‘the Magician’ has hardly dominated their previous head-to-heads at 6-4 up, but is odds-on 3/10 favourite to send Perry home. In this first to 13 frames affair, though, a longer frame format might bring the best out of his opponent.

At 5/2 to upset Murphy, ‘Gentleman Joe’ comes into this encounter in fine form, having recently won his first-ever ranking event after 24 years as a professional, the Players Championship Grand Final.