Judd Trump will be looking to become the first player in history to win seven ranking titles in one season with a victory at this year’s Snooker World Championships.
A record-breaking season for Trump has already seen him win over one million pounds and make nearly 100 centuries.
No player has ever successfully defended a maiden world title, a fact which is referred to as the ‘Crucible curse’.
Trump will be hoping to avoid the curse as he begins his defence of the world title against world-number-26 Tom Ford, who despite three attempts has never won a match at the Championships.
The 32 man line-up includes eight former World Champions, including five-time world champion Ronnie O’Sullivan, who will face Thepchaiya Un-Nooh in his first match. The man from Thailand is making his third consecutive appearance at the Crucible, but is yet to win a match there.
If he O’Sullivan were to win the title, he would equal the records of Steve Davis and Ray Reardon, with only Stephen Hendry having won the competition more, a magnificent seven times. 44 year old O’Sullivan has not won the title since 2013 however, when he defeated Barry Hawkins 18-12 in the final.
Four-time champion John Higgins will face two-time finalist Matthew Stevens in his first round whilst three-time champion Mark Selby begins his campaign against debutant Jordan Brown of Northern Ireland.
Five players will be making their debut at the Crucible alongside Brown, including world-number-82 Ashley Carty from Rotherham, who is only 25 years old. Carty impressively beat seven time World Championships competitor Robert Milkins 10-8 to qualify for his maiden appearance at the Crucible.
The World Championships begin on Friday 31st July with Trump vs Ford.
Full Draw:
Judd Trump vs Tom Ford
Yan Bingtao vs Elliot Slessor
Stephen Maguire vs Martin Gould
Kyren Wilson vs Anthony Hamilton
John Higgins vs Matthew Stevens
David Gilbert vs Kurt Maflin
Jack Lisowski vs Anthony McGill
Mark Allen vs Jamie Clarke
Mark Williams vs Alan McManus
Stuart Bingham vs Ashley Carty
Ding Junhui vs Mark King
Ronnie O’Sullivan vs Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
Mark Selby vs Jordan Brown
Shaun Murphy vs Noppon Saengkham
Barry Hawkins vs Alexander Ursenbacher
Neil Robertson vs Liang Wenbo
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