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Trump lines up a shot during a match at the World Cup in Wuxi on July 5. The world number three says he is "quietly confident" that his team can win the title. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn] |
According to Trump, the sport's biggest problem is a relative lack of talented British players emerging to challenge the veterans.
He is currently the only player in the top 10 in his twenties, and the upper echelons of the sport are increasingly becoming the preserve ofveterans like four-time world champion John Higgins and five-time champion Ronnie O'Sullivan.
"You just need some inspiration from somewhere, you need some of the younger players to produce in tournaments on the BBC," he says. "[But it's] going to be hard, because a lot of snooker clubs are shutting down."
He puts part of this problem down to World Snooker, the sport's governing body, changing the qualifying system to major tournaments, which has resulted in young players often facing daunting opponents in the very first round.
But he also believes that the sport has simply evolved since the days when a youngster like Stephen Hendry could emerge from obscurity to win the World Championship multiple times.
"Maybe twenty years ago the standard wasn't anywhere near what it is now … If you put Stephen Hendry in this era maybe he would've improved and won the World [Championship] ten times, but I think the standard nowadays is certainly better," he says.
None of this has dampened enthusiasm for the sport in China, however. Trump's only regret is the demise of his favorite tournament, the Shanghai Masters, which has been replaced by the World Open in Jiangxi province this season.
"It's disappointing, because it's probably not only my favorite tournament in China, but probably my favorite tournament apart from the World Championship in the world," he says.
"[Shanghai] is probably the only city I come to as a snooker player that I'd actually pay to go on holiday there. The way I've been looked after there has been amazing, so it's definitely a tournament I'm going to miss."
But the star says he is glad to have discovered a new tournament—the World Cup—where he can get his China fix.
"It's a good tournament, I'm glad I came now. It's a whole different pressure out there when you're playing for someone else, playing for your country, and Barry [Hawkins, Trump's England teammate] as well, you don't want to let him down," he says.
"It was a great decision to put this tournament on and in future I'll try to get back to the World Cup."
