Neil Robertson is still going at UK Championship qualifying, but only just, as he asks Judd Trump to ‘remove the curse’ that he put on him.
The Thunder from Down Under narrowly beat Oliver Lines on Tuesday night to make the final round of qualifying for York, where he faces Matthew Stevens on Thursday.
Lines was ahead 5-4 and things looked bleak for the Australian, but he scrapped his way over the line, despite feeling that his luck was against him.
Robertson beat Trump at last week’s Champion of Champions, with the Englishman complaining about his lack of luck after the defeat.
The Aussie now reckons Trump has cursed him with bad luck since those comments and wants the world number one to lift his hex.
Robertson said in an Instagram video after beating Lines: ‘So Judd, after our match when you called me so lucky, I have had anything but luck!
‘Could you please remove the curse that you have put upon me? Was it the thin red, two cushions in behind the yellow, touching ball that sent you over the edge?
‘So yes mate, can you please remove the curse, because playing the game like this isn’t much fun, I do like a challenge, but enough is enough, you’ve had your fun so please remove the curse and allow me to play the game with equal luck as everyone. Thank you mate.’
Robertson told World Snooker Tour: ‘I was dead and buried at 5-4. I played great apart from the seventh frame, then Oliver took control and he had chances to win.
‘I made a really good break in the last frame to get back into it. I know there’s a lot on the line, my Masters spot is at stake so every game in this event is a double whammy, despite the fact that I have had a great season.
‘My game is there, in a way it was good to have to dig deep tonight in a match where things were not going my way.’
Trump, being in the world’s top 16, has already booked his spot at York and doesn’t have to face the nervy qualifiers.
After his 6-4 Champion of Champions defeat to Robertson, he said: ‘I thought I was very unlucky. To be honest I think Neil knows that he didn’t deserve to win like that, but that happens.
‘He put in a good spell to go 3-1 up, then after that he had quite a few chances, missed quite a few long balls and got safe every time. It’s just one of those days.’
The final round of qualifiers is played over Wednesday and Thursday in Leicester, with the main event in York getting underway on Saturday.
Judgement Days Schedule
Wednesday 20 November
1pm
- Elliot Slessor vs Stephen Maguire
- Jak Jones vs Fan Zhengyi
- Jackson Page vs Hossein Vafaei
- Jimmy Robertson vs Stuart Bingham
7pm
- Ryan Day vs Sanderson Lam
- Wang Yuchen vs Barry Hawkins
- Jack Lisowski vs Bai Yulu
- David Lilley vs Wu Yize
Thursday 21 November
1pm
- Zhou Yuelong vs Matt Selt
- Lei Peifan vs Ben Woollaston
- Ricky Walden vs Zhao Xintong
- Julien Leclercq vs Dave Gilbert
7pm
- Rob Milkins vs Xu Si
- Liu Hongyu vs Michael Holt
- Stan Moody vs He Guoqiang
- Matthew Stevens vs Neil Robertson
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