The third quarter final of The Masters takes place inside Alexandra Palace on Friday afternoon when a place in the semi-final is up for grabs in the opening event of 2023 for either Barry Hawkins or Judd Trump when they face off.
These two men met in the semi-final of the tournament a year ago when Hawkins came out on top and he will be looking for a repeat of that while Trump will be out to get some revenge and make it back into the last four himself.
Barry Hawkins
When the draw for this tournament came out it looked like Barry Hawkins had come out with a stinker given that he had the man of the season so far in Mark Allen but as it turned out it wasn’t a problem because he did a real job on the Northern Irishman. I don’t think even the biggest Hawkins fan would have seen him win that one 6-0 but that is exactly how it transpired as the Englishman put in a near perfect performance.
It was the safety play of Hawkins that got him into a dominant position against Allen but when he had the opportunity to score he filled his boots. One thing about winning in that fashion is it is often hard to back that up with a similar level of display in the next game so that is something that he needs to be wary of heading into this match. We know that Hawkins is a player for the big occasion so there are no concerns on that score.
Judd Trump
I would imagine that Judd Trump woke up on Friday morning delighted to be getting ready for this quarter final because he looked down and out in the first round when he trailed Ryan Day 5-3. He didn’t just trail him but he wasn’t playing very well at all and it looked like the Welshman would win with a bit to spare. He kept missing match ball though which encouraged Trump to keep coming and in the end it was the former champion who got over the line.
I don’t think Trump will need anyone to tell him that he needs a significant improvement if he is going to come out on top in this quarter final. That isn’t beyond him but I didn’t like the vibe of his post-match interviews where he claimed he was lacking in confidence and not feeling very good about his game. He isn’t going to beat Hawkins unless he is on song in all departments so it will be interesting to see if he can find that level.
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Head-to-head
These two men have met on 15 previous occasions and it might come as a surprise to most that it is Barry Hawkins who has a 9-6 lead. That advantage is even greater in the frame count where Hawkins is 75-62 ahead which suggests his wins tend to be comfortable ones. He has won the last three matches and also holds a 2-1 lead in their meetings at The Masters, the latest of which was in the semi-final here last year. Trump does actually lead their best of 11 clashes 4-2 but it is Hawkins who has won two of their three previous quarter finals.
Betting
I’m not really one to get too caught up in previous meetings because they are a different day but the one thing the career records between these two tells us is that Barry Hawkins doesn’t fear Judd Trump and I think that is half of the battle when you take on these stars of the game. We saw in the previous round and indeed last year that this incredible atmosphere enhances his play rather than shackles him so I think Hawkins has to be backed at strong odds against here.
There was absolutely nothing in the first round which suggests Trump should be such a warm favourite here. Great players can turn it on at any time but he clearly isn’t feel good about himself right now. He gave that away in his interviews after the game while Hawkins gave off the impression of a quietly confident man. Hawkins has won the last three matches between the two so he has the wood on his man at present and I think he can extend that winning run to four matches here.
Tips
Back B.Hawkins to beat J.Trump for a 3/10 stake at 2.60 with Coral
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