Why Judd Trump shares one major headache with Andy Murray as John Higgins turns back time at Masters snooker with epic run - 'Still got it'
Published 18/01/2026 at 13:07 GMT
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Judd Trump has won one world title in his golden career, but has been denied greater riches in the sport by a 'Class of '92' whose desire to compete for the sport's greatest prizes shows no sign of diminishing at the age of 50. The world No. 1 led John Higgins 3-0 and 5-3 in an epic semi-final on Saturday, but saw the Scotsman fight back to complete a rousing 6-5 win at a packed Alexandra Palace.
'He's done it the hard way!' - Higgins books Masters final spot with phenomenal comeback
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It is not fraternising with hyperbole to suggest Judd Trump would have won bigger and better in the cut-throat climes of professional snooker if he had been playing in a different era.
The world No. 1, who turned professional in 2005, has managed to become a serial winner while facing a pristine 'Class of '92' in Ronnie O'Sullivan, John Higgins and Mark Williams, whose potting powers remarkably show no signs of decay set against the acid test of rising standards.
It probably sounds absurd to suggest Trump has left more trophies on the table when one considers his success in lifting 30 ranking titles since 2011, but this is the unique generation game he continues to grapple with.
And he is probably not the only player who could harbour such a gripe, with Mark Selby, Neil Robertson, Shaun Murphy, Ding Junhui, Kyren Wilson and Mark Allen among a growing cast of groaning cuemen perhaps having to wrestle with their own slightly surreal reality.
Without the need to confront the ongoing triple threat of O'Sullivan, Higgins and Williams in the Triple Crown tournaments, Trump's life and times on the old green baize would have been furnished with even greater riches.
Steve Davis was snooker's dominant force in the 1980s with Stephen Hendry usurping him in the 1990s, the pair amassing 13 Crucible crowns between 1981 and 1999, but neither Hendry nor Davis won the world title beyond their early thirties.
Yet O'Sullivan, Higgins and Williams seem to be hitting the white ball better than ever in reaching 50 not out.
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'That's got to be shot of the week!' - Higgins hits tremendous red down the rails
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"Yeah, I've still got it," said Higgins on TNT Sports after securing a meeting with Kyren Wilson in Sunday's best-of-19 frame showpiece showdown.
"People will laugh, but I think I'm a better player now than I've ever been.
"I'm so proud because I've lost the last few against him. Maybe at the start of the match, he maybe should have been 4-0 in front.
"It was maybe too easy for him."
Trump is astonishingly on course to hit 40 where he could feasibly compete in a World Seniors event against the Class of '92 while trying to fend off the pesky timeless potters for trophies on the main circuit.
Trump won his solitary world title with an 18-9 victory over John Higgins in 2019, where the duo produced a record 11 centuries, but has also lost twice in Crucible finals to Higgins (18-15) in 2011 and O'Sullivan (18-13) in 2022.
He was denied a spot in last year's world final 17-14 by Williams and lost 17-11 to O'Sullivan in the semi-finals in 2013.
O'Sullivan memorably also denied him 10-9 at the 2014 UK final in York.
The theme is unmistakable: if one doesn't get you, another one will.
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'Calm down, pal' - Higgins tells excited Alexandra Palace fan to relax in fifth frame
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"I know everybody wants to win, but there are three people who want to win more than anyone," said Trump on TNT Sports during the Northern Ireland Open in October.
"John Higgins, Ronnie and Mark Williams. Honestly, I can see it in their faces. They're so determined to win, they'll do absolutely anything, all three of them.
"They all play it off a little bit differently. John doesn't hide the fact, Mark and Ronnie lie to themselves a bit, but I just try to instil that into my game.
"They're so different, but they're all the same. They want to eat you alive and win in any way possible."
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It is a bit like the major headache Andy Murray faced at the peak of his powers in tennis.
Murray, a great Scot with a will to win as much as Higgins, claimed two Wimbledon titles and the US Open, but ran into a historical roadblock like no other in having to confront Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in their prime.
Winning three Grand Slams from such a brutal era of the game was a glorious effort, but how much more would he have fished from the net if he had been performing in the 1980s or 1990s?
Murray lost five times in the Australian Open final, four times to Djokovic and once to Federer, who defeated him in the US Open and Wimbledon final, with Djokovic also denying Murray in the French Open title match.
Higgins, Masters champion in 1999 and 2006, is a grand master of the game, but is also the master of the grand understatement, at times performing the role of a decrepit has-been to perfection in his media conferences when the truth tells you something different altogether.
Time and tide waits for no man apart from John Higgins with cue in hand.
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'What a reprieve' - Trump squashes chance to win with astonishing missed brown
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"I have got to a stage now where I just want to enjoy myself," said Higgins, buoyed by title victories at the World Open and Tour Championship in recent months.
But there is nothing like winning for sheer enjoyment.
Despite having lost 14 out of his previous 15 meetings with Trump, he was the better and stronger player in the semi-finals and deserved to progress to the final by fighting back from 3-0 and 5-3 behind to keep alive his hopes of becoming the oldest Masters champion of them all.
He holds an 8-3 winning record over 2004 world champion Wilson in their career head-to-heads, but that will count for little in the chase for the £350,000 first prize, which would be a record winner's cheque for Higgins.
Breaks of 104, 70, 62, 57 and 57 saw Higgins emulate his 6-5 win over world champion Zhao Xintong 5-3 behind in the quarter-finals.
Tellingly, Trump does not see the roadblock disappearing any time soon.
Last season's Crucible finalist Mark Williams became the oldest winner of a ranking event at the age of 50 at the Xi'an Grand Prix with a 10-3 win over Shaun Murphy in October.
And Ronnie O'Sullivan, the youngest and oldest winner of the Masters, became the oldest player to make a 147 at the age of 49, the first man to produce two maximums in the same match at the Saudi Arabia Masters in August.
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'Back from the brink!' - Wilson caps thrilling semi-final with brilliant century
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"John's just got to the final of the last tournament, Mark's already won a tournament this season," said Trump.
"I think I'd be disappointed if I couldn't play to a good level at 50, but I think those guys will probably go to 60, quite comfortably.
"It’s just whether they want to keep playing at that age. It depends. See where the money is, and they'll decide from there, I think."
Class will out. But in the incomparable cue case of the 'Class of '92', it has never really gone away.
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