Stu ready to lock horns with Trump (From Echo)

Stu ready to lock horns with Trump

12:11pm Wednesday 15th February 2012 in Sport By James Colasanti

STUART Bingham set up another showdown with fellow-Essex boy Judd Trump after getting past Romford’s Mark King at the Welsh Open.

World number 11 Bingham saw off qualifier King 4-2 yesterday at the ranking event at the Newport Centre.

The potter from Vange will now face Trump, a Bristolian who lives in Romford, in a match scheduled to get underway at 7pm tomorrow.

It was a very timely win for Bingham which, combined with Mark Davis’ first round defeat to Ding Junhui on Monday, virtually guarantees his top 16 place for April’s World Championship in Sheffield.

Trump progressed after smashing Ireland’s Fergal O’Brien 4-0 on Monday at the tournament in Newport.

The two men have already faced each other twice in major tournaments this season.

Bingham came out on top with a 5-1 first-round win at the Shanghai Masters in early September.

But a month after winning the UK Championship in York, Trump took his revenge by inflicting a 6-4 first-round exit on Bingham at the Masters at Alexandra Palace.

Their match will be screened live on Eurosport and on BBC Wales.

If Bingham progresses he could face Mark Williams — the man he beat to win the Australian Goldfields Open in July — or the mercurial Ronnie O’Sullivan, who recently won the German Masters to ease his own top 16 worries.