German Masters 2024: Judd Trump advances in Berlin with Lukas Kleckers whitewash, Luca Brecel exits

Judd Trump cruised into the second round of the German Masters with a commanding 5-0 win over local favourite Lukas Kleckers.

The two-time tournament winner bookended his victory with two centuries as Kleckers struggled to get a look-in at the table in front of his home crowd.

Trump had the reds nicely spread from the off and after nudging them open with the black available to both corners, duly kicked off with a ton in an electric start.

Kleckers was quickly reminded what he was up against as Trump returned to the table in the second frame and steered a red to the left corner, opening up the pack with the black again passable to both corners.

Trump built a 57-point lead before overcutting a red to the left corner, but Kleckers couldn’t take advantage of the rare opportunity.

The home player eventually got on the board when Trump missed a recovery pot. The world No. 76 knocked in to the left pocket and followed up with a couple of tidy rest shots.

After undercutting the pink, Kleckers put together his first substantial break by sinking the remaining reds and then playing a safety up the table, tucking in behind the brown with a snooker still required.

Trump struck the black off three cushions and Kleckers couldn’t find the yellow, but the frame was back on for the German.

Kleckers left the yellow hanging over the right middle which allowed Trump back in, where he took his time to clear the remaining balls – including a delightful trick shot on the final black – and double his lead.

The third frame was not so smooth sailing for the world No. 2. Kleckers rolled one into the left middle, worked his way to the black and then split the pack, but didn’t have much else on.

He missed a mid-distance pot on the green and Trump returned to the baize with high expectations, but instantly missed one to the right corner as the local favourite was gifted another crack.

However, Kleckers couldn’t get going. He missed another red to the right corner as Trump fired in a long green, leaving four reds bunched together in the middle of the table.

The Englishman built a decent lead when he knocked in all but three of the reds before he overcut to the right corner which left Kleckers a glimmer of hope.

Kleckers began putting away the three remaining reds, which he did so remarkably, and then tried to go at the last off the black.

A thin brush left him with a slide down the rail with the rest, which he missed, and that was the frame over as Trump took a 3-0 lead with a whitewash in sight.

Trump was back to his best in the fourth frame and he knocked in a break of 81 to dampen Kleckers’ hopes of a run at his home tournament.

The pair re-emerged after the interval for the final frame, but it was another straightforward outing for Trump, who finished the way he started – with a ton.

Trump will play Matthew Stevens in the second round.

World champion Luca Brecel fell at the first hurdle when he was beaten 5-2 by Ishpreet Singh Chadha.

Breaks of 84 and 61 gave the Belgian a 2-1 advantage, but Singh hit back with four frames on the bounce.

He sank runs of 78, 88 and 70 on his way to victory over the world No. 4 and has earned a second round match against Liu Hongyu.