• World Snooker Championships

Defending champ Robertson fears Trump upset

Current world champion Neil Robertson admits he would have preferred an easier first round draw than Judd Trump when he begins his defence of his title at the Crucible this month.

Robertson became the first Australian of the modern era to win the World Championships last year, when he defeated Graeme Dott in the Sheffield final. He will kick off his return to the arena against 21-year-old Trump - who recently won his first title at the China Open - and admits the tie could hardly be any more difficult.

"For a defending champion it's one of the toughest draws you could ever have," Robertson said. "It could work for me; it could work against me. It just depends on how Judd handles it as well.

"He's going out there now as a tournament winner, and people will be expecting a lot of him now.

"Before he won China it was almost like a free match. No-one had seen that much of him and he could just roll up.

"But now he's won something there's a different sort of pressure. He may still be buzzing and may play his socks off, which if he does I'll have to play very well to win.

"I'm not too sure how it's going to go. We could both be nervous wrecks!"

Nevertheless, win or lose the 29-year-old is determined to savour the occasion - noting that many illustrious players have never had the chance to return to the Crucible as defending champion.

"I'm going to go out there and just enjoy it as much as possible," Robertson said. "I think that's the important thing, win or lose.

"You've got to realise there's been a lot of great players, such as Jimmy White for example, who haven't had the privilege of playing in the Crucible as the defending world champion."

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