Alan McManus has named Judd Trump as snooker's player of the season so far, placing him ahead of Mark Selby and double ranking champion Jak Jones.
The campaign has already produced several big-name title winners, but it has also been an unpredictable start in many ways. Jones began the season without a ranking title to his name and now has two, having won twice in just six events. Chang Bingyu and Ali Carter have also won ranking titles despite being ranked outside the top 16 at the time, illustrating the depth of contenders on the professional tour now.
Consistent Trump leads the pack
More predictable winners have included Selby at the China Open, world champion Wu Yize at the Shenzhen Open, and Trump at the non-ranking Shanghai Masters in August. Although Trump has not yet claimed a ranking title this season, he has been highly consistent, reaching at least the quarter-finals in four of the five events he has played.
His only early slip came at the China Open, where he lost to eventual runner-up Noppon Saengkham in the first round. The 37-year-old has produced some under-par performances in the business end of events, including a semi-final defeat to Wu at the Shenzhen Open on Saturday, but McManus still believes he has performed better than anyone else so far this season.
McManus backs Trump despite losses
“Judd, for me, the player of the season so far, it’s just the very odd match he’s not turning up and throwing in the odd bad performance,” McManus said on his Snooker Breakfast podcast. “But we can forgive him that because he’s winning tons and tons of matches and the majority of them at a landslide.”
On Trump's 6-1 loss to Wu in Shenzhen, the former Masters champion said: “Just one of those bad days at the office, I guess, and he’ll have to put it down to that. He’s had one or two heavy defeats this season, Noppon Saengkham was 6-3, but we know Judd is going to have a terrific season, he’s already having a very very good one, probably the best of anyone.”
Wu Yize impresses as world champion
Wu, who knocked Trump out in Shenzhen, went on to lift the title and add it to the World Championship and International Championship he has won in the last 12 months at just 22 years old. “Wu Yize brushed aside Judd Trump,” said McManus. “Credit to him, he’s holding that mantle of being world champion. It’s not weighing heavy on his shoulders to me, he looks really calm. In no way is he looking under serious pressure. You’re talking about three massive events in 11 months. He hasn’t had a great season so far, granted, but I certainly didn’t think that was going to last very long and it hasn’t.”
Wu had struggled in ranking events this campaign before his Shenzhen triumph, so he would not have much of an argument to challenge Trump for player of the season so far. However, Selby would certainly get some votes, and Jones might as well after winning the Championship League and the British Open. Jones' run to victory in Cheltenham was especially impressive, beating Chang and Trump en route to the British Open final, where he downed Selby.
Selby has won the biggest tournament of the season so far, the China Open, was runner-up at the British Open, and has reached two more quarter-finals, winning more matches than any other player.
