Top Trump tweets his way to shock Crucible triumph

Going into the mid-session interval at the Betfred.com World Championship, Trump had seen his halfway 5-4 lead turn into a 7-6 deficit.

The Australian had creeped in front in an evenly-balanced contest and at the break most pundits inside the famous Sheffield theatre would have tipped a Robertson victory.

But the 21-year-old - who hadn’t even qualified to reach the Crucible televised stages for the last three years – used the short break to tweet on the social networking website.

Trump tweeted that he’d had a ‘couple of twitches’ when missing frame-winning shots. “I’ve just got into Twitter,” he said after the match.

It was a far cry from a ranting Sir Alex Ferguson-style hairdryer treatment, but it did the trick to relax Trump – on a high after winning his first major tournament, the China Open, earlier this month – who returned to reel off the next three frames to stand just one frame from victory.

Robertson did fluke a red to help him pull a frame back, but Trump was not to be denied as he helped preserve an amazing ‘Crucible Curse’ which means no first-time world champion has ever returned and defended their record. Bradford’s Joe Johnson came closest 25 years ago when he lost a repeat of the 1985 final to Steve Davis 18-14.

More remarkably, it is now 15 years since a player won back-to-back titles in Sheffield, during Stephen Hendry’s domination in the Nineties.

Robertson, the seventh defending champion to lose his first match at the Crucible, Graeme Dott was the last to do that in 2007, said: “It was a really tough game. After he won in China I was on a hiding to nothing.

“I made some silly mistakes and he handled the pressure well. He will take some stopping - maybe the title is two or three years away for him, but Shaun Murphy won here in 2005 playing attacking snooker.

“I’m disappointed with the result but felt I played a good match.

“The early session was where I could have put my mark on the match, definitely at least 6-3.

“Hats off to him though, he did really well. If he plays like that I don’t think he’ll have too many difficulties until the semi-finals.

“It’s not really a setback for me. It’s the first time I’ve lost in the first round since 2005 when I played (Stephen) Hendry.

“I’ve had a good run so there can’t be any sour grapes.”

There were clear nerves in the opening exchanges, Robertson stumbling with an easy two-red plant into the corner in the first frame but Trump failed to capitalise and the Australian cleared to the black with a 72 break.

Trump took the next two frames, winning a scrappy third frame on the black, before Robertson’s 79 restored parity at 2-2.

Trump, a 40-1 title shot before the tournament, potted the first century of the 2011 tournament – and his first at the Crucible beating his highest score in Sheffield, 86 of four years previously – when he knocked in 122.

The players were now in the groove, as Robertson responded with a 127 and 100, but it was not enough to see him lead after the first session as Trump led 5-4.

Robertson came out in the evening session to scramble to a 7-6 lead – thanks to breaks of 58 and 90 – but Trump hit back to take the next three frames.

At 9-7, Robertson was now desperately fighting for his life. Leading 53-37, Trump had the finish line in sight but broke down after a 54 clearance to leave them playing cat and mouse with the final red.

World No 14 Trump was first to blink, leaving the red over the centre pocket and the 29-year-old Australian cleared to stay alive.

Trump, whose only previous appearance in Sheffield was a first-round defeat to Shaun Murphy in 2007, was first in the points in the 18th frame and he made no mistake this time with a break of 83.

“I missed a few, but I dealt with it well and kept my composure,” said Trump. “At 9-8 I just tried to forget about the previous frame, and managed to win it in one visit.

“I came here with high expectations. The last time I played here I was only 17 and I didn’t take it all in.

“This time I wanted to enjoy it and not worry if I missed the odd ball. I’m getting used to playing on TV now, which has taken a while because the tables and the lights are different.

“My form at venues was terrible up until China and the pressure was building on me. But since I won my first match in Beijing I’ve been a different player.”

On his Twitter remarks of a ‘couple of twitches’, he added: “I wasn’t nervous on those balls I missed, they were just lapses of concentration because I was thinking of making centuries. I need to lose that habit.

“I’m on a high now and I don’t want it to end. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t think I could win the tournament.”

Murphy, meanwhile, came close to completing only the second white-wash in Crucible history after leading Marcus Campbell 9-0.

The former Rotherham world champion fired in breaks of 93, 100, 56, 68, 53, 53, 75, 99 and 96 - needing just one frame to score the first whitewash since John Parrott beat Eddie Charlton 10-0 in 1992 - but Campbell returned for the second session to snatch a frame before going down 10-1.

Elsewhere, Jamie Cope beat Andrew Pagett 10-7, Ali Carter beat Dave Harold 10-3 and Mark Williams saw off Ryan Day 10-5.

Sheffield-based Ding Junhui resumes this morning needing two more frames to progress to the second round as he leads Scotland’s Jamie Burnett 8-1, while Stephen Hendry leads Joe Perry 6-3 overnight.

n Follow Richard Hercock on Twitter @RHercockYPSport