‘He made a lot of mistakes and got away with it’ – Judd Trump not happy with loss to Aaron Hill at Northern Ireland Open

Trump, who was aiming for a fourth Northern Ireland Open title, had very little table time as Hill made the most of his chances to book a place in the third round.

However, the 2019 world champion feels differently about the match.

Asked if he felt Hill produced an inspired performance, Trump told Eurosport. “Not really.

“I didn’t feel like he played that well. There were quite a few shots he got away with so [it was] disappointing.

Trump’s loss is his latest early exit at a tournament after he lost his first match at the Hong Kong Masters and was knocked out in the quarter-finals of the European Masters.

The 33-year-old is yet to find his best snooker so far this season, but insists he didn’t play badly against Hill.

“I don’t really know what I did wrong,” said Trump.

“First frame he fluked two balls, [and in the] third frame he played terrible safety and got away with it and the list goes on.

“I missed a ball in the last frame, other than that, he made a lot of mistakes and seemed to get away with it. So one of them.”

Hill, who will play Tom Ford in the next round, was delighted with his win.

“I know I can play like that all the time, it’s just about getting consistency,” said Hill in the Eurosport studio. “I’m pretty happy with the way I played. I’m buzzing.

“I like playing out there in front of the crowd and in front of the TV cameras. When you play the likes of Judd, it brings the best out of you because you know you have to play well.

“I’m just chuffed to pieces now and to have my family there in the front row is a brilliant feeling. It means the world to me. I just hope it kick-starts me now and I can do this more often.

“It’s right up there with one of my biggest wins obviously, and one of the biggest days of my life.”

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