World Snooker Championship: Yan Bingtao takes early lead against world No 1 Judd Trump

The Chinese No 2, Yan Bingtao, takes a 5-3 lead over the defending world champion into the second day of their round 2 clash

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Yan Bingtao of China holds a 5-3 lead going into the second day of his round two match against world number one Judd Trump in the World Snooker Championship. Photo: VCG/VCG via Getty Images

Published: 1:42pm, 7 Aug 2020Updated: 1:42pm, 7 Aug 2020

China’s Yan Bingtao ended the first day of his second round World Snooker Championship clash against world number one Judd Trump with a narrow 5-3 lead, but he may live to regret not capitalising on a chance to make it 6-2 at the midway point.

Yan, the world No 16, lost the first frame of the match but hit back in fine fashion in the second on the back of a break of 133. The pair exchanged frames three and four, before Yan got on top for the remainder of the session, and had a chance to clear in frame eight, but was forced to settle for a two-frame advantage going into day two.

Yan, the 20-year-old who would become the youngest ever world champion were he to go all the way at the Crucible this month, missed a gettable brown as he went about clearing in the last frame of the session and Trump, thankful of the misstep, took advantage.

Their match resumes at 11am (local time).

Elsewhere on Thursday, four-time world champion John Higgins was eliminated just hours after registering the first maximum break at the tournament in eight years.

The Scottish veteran went down to Norway’s Kurt Maflin 13-11 in a surprise result.