Robertson and Trump out but O’Sullivan battles through

Defending champion Neil Robertson and world number one Judd Trump were among a number of high-profile players knocked out in the first round of the World Grand Prix in Hong Kong.

John Higgins, Shaun Murphy and Mark Allen were also beaten, although seven-time world champion Ronnie O’Sullivan avoided a similar fate.

O’Sullivan recovered from a slow start to beat Joe O’Connor 5-3.

After fighting back from 2-0 down, O’Sullivan levelled the match before losing the fifth frame to slip behind again.

But two breaks of 72 enabled O’Sullivan to take a 4-3 lead, before he wrapped up the match with a fine cut on the pink.

“I don’t think a lack of sharpness is my problem because I have always played less tournaments than other players,” said O’Sullivan.

“I think my bad game is a lot worse than it used to be, and my good is not as good. That’s the reason I am not winning as much.

“I am probably not a very good player any more and I have to accept that. I am trying to find a way to keep playing without it driving me crazy.

“I posted about Novak Djokovic the other day. He is the best in any sport at managing emotions and we all try to be like him, but it’s not easy.”

World number three Robertson entered the tournament in good form after reaching the semi-finals of the German Masters last week, but failed to carry his momentum into the first-round tie with Jak Jones as he lost 5-1.

Robertson started well with a break of 46, but a missed red handed the initiative to Jones, who went on to open up a 2-0 lead.

A break of 88 helped Robertson fight back briefly to win the third frame, but Jones took control afterwards, triumphing in the next three to ease into the second round.

The match in Hong Kong took place only three and a half days after Robertson’s 6-1 defeat by Shaun Murphy in Berlin, with the Australian cutting a frustrated figure throughout.

Former World Championship finalist Jones will play Zhou Yuelong in the second round on Thursday.

German Masters winner Trump was beaten by Yuan Sijun, who knocked in a 103 in the first frame as he went 2-0 up.

Trump took the third and fifth frames but Yuan stood firm to secure a 5-2 victory and a match against Ali Carter, who beat Allen 5-4.

Higgins beat world champion Zhao Xintong on the way to the Masters final last month but, this time, was beaten 5-3 by the Chinese player, who set up a match against Mark Selby.

Murphy lost 5-1 to China’s Pang Junxu, who made breaks of 134 and 130 on the way to victory.