Murphy began the year by reaching the semi-finals at the Masters, but lost 2–6 against Robertson. He then reached the quarter-final of the German Masters, but lost 4–5 against Robertson. In the first round of the 2013 World Snooker Championship, Murphy defeated Martin Gould 10–5 to advance to the second round, where he faced Graeme Dott, winning 13–11. In the quarter-final, he faced Trump in a tense match that went to a deciding frame, after Trump won five consecutive frames from 7–12 down to level at 12–12. Trump ultimately prevailed in a nervy last frame to go through to the semi-final.