Judd Trump believes his dominance in the current era of snooker may not be appreciated until he stops playing.
The English star currently holds the No.1 spot in the snooker rankings by a very comfortable margin. Last season, Trump secured five ranking titles. This is one short from the snooker record of six – a record that Trump holds himself.
The snooker legend Ronnie O’Sullivan currently holds the record for most ranking titles. However, if Trump is able to keep his momentum, having won a staggering 21 in the past six years taking his tally to 29, he will certainly be on track to break the record.
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He is also only 35-years-old; just entering the prime age for snooker players. These accolades are even more impressive considering the toughness of snooker at the moment.
John Higgins, the three-time UK champion, has publicly stated that the standard of the World Snooker Tour is better than ever. But Trump is worried he won’t be appreciated until it’s over.
(Image: PA)
He told SportsBoom.com: “You take it for granted a little bit. Maybe it won’t be until it stops happening that people will realise just how dominant I was.
“I know I’m biased, but I do genuinely think I’ve had the toughest era of anyone. I had it very tough. John Higgns was in his absolute prime when I turned pro, I think Ronnie was a few years down the line and then he was in his prime.
“I’ve had Mark Williams, Mark Selby, Neil Robertson, Shaun Murphy and Mark Allen. I had everyone in their prime.
“When I turned pro, you’d have to say Ronnie at the age of 30 still hadn’t grown up, he wasn’t mature like he is now with his all-round game, he lost his head and stuff around that time.”
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The type of dominance being displayed by Trump is similar to the command the Stephen Hendry had over the sport in the 1990’s. It would be difficult for any fan to say the 35-year-old didn’t deserve the top spot in the rankings.
Nicknamed ‘The Ace in the Pack,’ Trump has won four Triple Crown titles and is ranked fourth on the all-time ranking event winners list. The English star believes that his stats are often overlooked.
He continued: “I’ve seen it a couple of times when people put up stats in terms of titles and finals that I’ve had compared to everybody else and there’s a big margin.
“It’s something that maybe doesn’t get talked about enough, the number of finals I’ve been in in the last five years or so. For me, there’s not much more that I can really do, I’m getting to five, six, seven finals a season.
“It’s very hard to be any more dominant than I am being. People have said about peoples’ prime and I feel like I’m only just reaching my prime now.”
The snooker star’s next match comes against Neil Robertson in a last-32 tie as he begins his bid for a second UK Championship on Tuesday afternoon.