German Masters 2021 - 'Even hungrier' - Judd Trump hoping to use Masters absence to inspire him
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Updated 26/01/2021 at 11:15 GMT
Judd Trump was forced to sit out this year's Masters tournament after testing positive for Covid-19 in the build-up to the event and is hoping to use his absence as a motivator to become an even better player. Trump also believes that he has become such a tough opponent as he has the "best safety" in the game.
Judd Trump in action
Image credit: Eurosport
Judd Trump is using his coronavirus-enforced absence from the 2021 Masters to inspire him to even greater success in the coming months.
The world number one was absent for the year's first Triple Crown event, having tested positive for the virus in the build-up to the tournament, which was eventually won by Yan Bingtao.
Neil Robertson failed to qualify for the Masters in 2018 and was subsequently motivated to become an even better player and Trump is hoping to emulate his rival as he gets back to action at the German Masters.
“The first day or two was tough to watch. You just have to sit it out and wait to be allowed out from isolation," he told the World Snooker Tour's official website.
I knew I was in the German Masters, which was nice. It was something to look forward to. Hopefully that experience has made me even hungrier to go on and do things this week.
“Because I’ve done so well recently, I haven’t had a lot of time to watch snooker. It was a bit different for me watching from the sidelines.
"It is a different scenario, but it’s a little bit like Neil Robertson not qualifying for the Masters a few years ago. That spurred him on to do what he has done in recent times.
"I hope I can use it as a motivational thing. Going forward for the rest of the season, I hope to pick up where I left off in that great World Grand Prix final against Jack Lisowski before Christmas.”
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In last year's German Masters final, Trump overcame Robertson to claim the title after a tight affair, and he believes that his safety game helped him to victory.
“Against Neil it can go a little bit cagey at times. Sometimes he overthinks things and they can become scrappy," he said.
"When I’m not playing my best, it is important just to ride it out and wait a few frames. Sometimes you need to scrap away before you start getting those good chances again.
“It gives me a lot of confidence being able to win in different ways. I know now that even if I’m not playing well, I still have a very good chance of winning. That gives me a lot of self belief going into matches.
"I think my safety is up there with the best, if not the best. When my break building is on, then I am very tough to beat."
The 2021 German Masters is live and exclusive on Eurosport. You can watch every moment on eurosport.co.uk and the Eurosport app.
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