Premier League 2011 (week 7) - Trump on top

Trump is on first place

Judd Trump wrote history last night in Exeter after beating both Ali Carter and Neil Robertson by 3-1. This is the first time since the beginning of this year's Premier League when a player manages to win two weekly finals. 
With his first 6 points earned after winning week five of cue action and last night's other 6, Judd Trump flies safely to the top of the provisional rankings with 12 precious points in his pocket.

It was definitely a night to remember for the snooker fans that gathered in Exeter to witness under pressure played snooker and although we can't say amazingly breaks were hit or that all the frames were played at full speed, you could still feel the thrill in the air. Some really cracking shots and outrageous flukes were performed in order to wow the coming crowd of fans.

The first semi-final of the evening saw the "Captain" Ali Carter taking on the Bristol-boy Judd Trump. Carter knew he needed to win this match, and so he started his journey with a steady 78 break to take the opener. Unfortunately for him not only his opponent draw level with runs of 30 and 31, but he also took the lead with a great 111 break.
The forth frame started with Trump potting feverishly one ball after another and hitting a 53 break in the process. However, he did fail to pot the frame and match ball, this prolonging the suspense for a few minutes more. In the end, after a fluked yellow and some misses from Carter, Trump ended the match with a 3-1 victory.

Not quite the evening Carter expected

This leaves Carter with 9 points, which by all means is not bad considering he still has one participation left. However his faith in this competition is yet to be decided. Although he's not in a very comfy place, we can’t say he has absolutely no chance to reach the final stages. It all depends on how the other players will do and how many points he will win during his last appearance in this year's Premier League.

Moving on to the second semi-final, Shaun Murphy and Neil Robertson were ready to enter the arena. The final scoreline was going to remain the same as the previous one and considering it was also applied in the final, we can definitely say it was the result of the night. - 3-1 -.

Murphy had a pretty good chance to win the first frame, but he unexpectedly missed the blue as he was reaching a 37, Neil coming back to the table for a 60 break that guaranteed him the opener. Still, Murphy didn't give up and levelled the match with a 62.
Runs of 52 and 20 were the ones that put the Aussie back in front, while a 48 and a clearance of 20 points sealed the victory for the 2010 world champion.

Not a good evening for Murphy

After last night match Murphy has 7 points, which put him not in a very soft spot. As well as Carter, he has one more week to prove he really, really wants to reach the final stages, but unlike him he doesn't have 9 points in the bag. Things don’t look good for last year's Premier League runner-up, but on a brighter note, there's always hope for a better performance and let's face it ... a bit of luck won't hut also.

Drums could be heard in the background and the emotions were running wild as the two finalists, Trump and Robertson were ready to start their confrontation.
First frame and things couldn't have been tighter. With just one point over Robertson, Trump was taking the opener (55-54). Still, we didn't have to wait too long until the situation was all square. The second frame was cashed by the Australian.

Robertson wasn't in the best form

However, from this point on, the balls seemed to be under Judd's command, breaks of 59 and 76 sealing his 3-1 victory and getting him the a privileged first place on the provisional rankings. A great victory for the 22-year old lad.

So, after seven weeks or cue action Judd Trump has 12 points and a very comply spot on top of the list, closely followed by Ding Junhui and Neil Robertson with 10 points each and Matthew Stevens, Mark Williams and Ali Carter with 9 points. Ronnie O'Sullivan currently occupies the forth place with 8 points, Shaun Murphy has 7 points in his pocket, John Higgins 5, while Jimmy White only 2.

Next on out snooker map is Southampton, where the Premier League caravan will go on November 3^rd. Here the defending champion, Ronnie O'Sullivan will meet this week's star Judd Trump, while Neil Robertson will take on Ding Junhui.