Snooker: Trump establishes significant lead over Williams

Judd Trump took a 7-1 lead against three-time winner Mark Williams during a feisty first session of his World Championship semi-final.

Trump, who won the title in 2019, led 3-0 at the Crucible after a tense first frame in which he made two breaks of 70.

Prior to the mid-session break, Williams rallied, but Trump drew away with three more half-centuries.

Ronnie O’Sullivan, a six-time champion, will face John Higgins, a four-time winner, in the other semi-final, which begins at 19:00 BST.

On Friday at 10:00 a.m., Trump and Williams will begin their match, with the Welshman facing a tremendous uphill battle to reach his seventh Crucible final from this best-of-33 match.

Williams’ struggles echoed those of the second session of his 6-2 quarter-final triumph over Yan Bingtao, in which he had many concentration lapses and was penalized for missing straightforward pots.

Before Trump took the opener, a tense session that lasted more than 30 minutes and included a re-rack, both players had chances.

Even in frames where Trump made significant contributions, Williams was afforded opportunities to put points on the board, but he struggled with his long game.

It was a great first session for Trump, who has now won 15 of his last 16 frames in two matches after winning 18 of their previous 27 meetings.