China’s Wu Yize blitzed to a 10-6 victory over Scotland’s four-time World Champion John Higgins to capture his maiden ranking title by winning the International Championship in Nanjing.

The supremely talented 22-year-old’s potential has been clear for many years. He became World Under-21 Champion back in 2018, aged just 14. Four years later, in 2022, he was named Rookie of the Year after his debut season on tour.

However, this has been Wu’s coming of age week. Having also beaten the likes of compatriots Zhang Anda and World Champion Zhao Xintong, it was against two of England’s finest where he displayed his blistering best.

From 4-0 down in his last 16 tie with world number one Judd Trump, Wu strung together 12 consecutive frames to win 6-4 and then whitewash Barry Hawkins 6-0. Each of those frames contained a break over 60. The question was could he carry that form into his final with experienced 50-year-old Higgins?

Today’s clash was the fourth biggest ever age gap in a ranking final, the biggest was 30 years between Ding Junhui and Steve Davis in the 2005 UK Championship final.

Wu’s previous two final appearances ended in defeat. He lost 9-7 to Neil Robertson in the 2024 English Open final and a few months later was beaten 9-5 by Lei Peifan in the 2024 Scottish Open final.

This win makes Wu the ninth ranking event winner from mainland China and he pockets a £175,000 top prize. That catapults Wu from 22nd to 13th in the Johnstone’s Paint World Rankings. He now qualifies automatically for the UK Championship, at Chris Wakelin’s expense.

It’s a disappointing end to a very strong week for 33-time ranking event winner Higgins. He will have to settle for the £75,000 runner-up cheque in his 59th ranking final. His run included a 9-2 win over close friend Stephen Maguire in the semis and a 6-2 defeat of Shaun Murphy in the quarters.

The afternoon session saw Wu dominate large chunks of the play, but Higgins showed his grit and experience to claim the last two frames leave the match in the balance at 5-4 to Wu.

When play got underway this evening, Wu immediately regained the initiative with a break of 87 to go two ahead.

A dramatic 11th frame proved to be a crucial juncture in the match. Higgins had the frame under control when he missed a tricky brown to the left hand baulk corner. After a brief exchange, Wu took on a double which led to a tremendous clearance of 43 to steal on the black and move 7-4 ahead.

Wu compounded that frame with a maximum attempt in the 12th. His run ended on 80, but it left him needing just two frames for glory at 8-4 as they went in for the mid-session.

After play resumed, the next two frames were traded, as Wu moved to the verge of victory at 9-5. Higgins crafted a defiant 53 to make it 9-6, but this evening was Wu’s moment. He went out with a bang, hammering home 108 to get over the line and become the International Champion.

“Honestly, it feels unbelievable. After beating Judd Trump, I started thinking about the whole journey and it was surreal,” said an elated Wu.

“I think one of the good things was that I started both sessions of the final really well. Having a lead helped me to relax. Everything went pretty much the way I wanted.

“It has been a long wait since reaching the final at the Scottish Open and the English Open last year. At times I honestly felt quite desperate, but deep down I always believed I had the ability to win a title. Every day I kept thinking about it. I had a strong will to lift a trophy. That belief carried me through this week.

“My parents are everything. My dad (Wu Jiepin) has been with me since I was a kid, always by my side. He’s helped me so much, especially during difficult times in the UK. I’m so grateful for what he has done for me.”

Higgins said: “I was nowhere near good enough all day. He was striking the ball beautifully. He was by far the better player. It reminded me so much of playing Paul Hunter. The way he gets through the ball and gets so much action on it. He is a brilliant player.

“There’s no point in getting too down. I’ll get home and have a couple of days off before the Champion of Champions. After that it is the Riyadh tournament and then building up to the UK. I’m disappointed with how I played today.

“I’m delighted his mum and dad are here. It brings back memories for me. It could open the floodgates. It goes to show the good hands snooker is in. I’m glad that I’ll probably be retiring in a couple of years with guys like that potting them off the lampshades. He is a total star.”

All the detailed results are on snooker.org

Ding Junhui was the most successful of the Grove players in this event: he reached the QFs, losing by 5-3 to Shaun Murphy, the eventual runner-up. It was also Shaun Murphy who had eliminated Wu Yize by 5-4 in the round of 32. NEil Robertson also lost at the last 32 stage, beaten 5-4 by He Guoqiang. Mark Selby lost in the last 64, going out at the hands of Mark Davis.
Luca Brecel had lost to Sunny Akani in the qualifiers. He had conceded the match after three frames

Wu Yize needed to win two qualifying matches to make it to the main venue and duly did. He beat Jian Jun (10-4) and Matthew Stevens (10-9) in the qualifying rounds, but went out to Mark Williams in the last 32, beaten by 10-8. Willo then went on to reach the final, so this was a great effort by Wu.
Ding Junhui and Luca Brecel were seeded 10 and 7 respectively, which means that they were due to face each other in the second round at the Crucible, should they both negotiate the first round successfully … which they did. Luca beat Ding by 13-4 in the second round. Luca then lost by 13-8 to Judd Trump in the quarter-finals.
Both Mark Selby and Neil Robertson lost in the first round at the Crucible, the round of 32. Mark was beaten 10-8 by Ben Woollaston and Neil lost to Chris Wakelin by the same score.

All detailed results are available on snooker.org

Selby Wins 24th Ranking Title

Mark Selby won the BetVictor Welsh Open for the second time, and his 24th ranking title in all, with a 9-6 victory over Stephen Maguire in the final in Llandudno.

From 6-6, Selby pulled away to win the last three frames to land the £100,000 top prize and Ray Reardon Trophy. Reardon and Terry Griffiths, two of the best ever Welsh players, have passed away in recent months and both would have appreciated Selby’s capacity to raise his game at the key moments as he dominated the closing stages, after Maguire had made a fine clearance for 6-6.

This is becoming an excellent season for 41-year-old Selby as he won the Unibet British Open in September and the BetVictor Championship League Invitational earlier this month. It’s the first time since 2020/21 he has won three titles in a single season – and there are opportunities for Selby to add to his haul in the coming months, notably in the spring when he will be among the leading contenders for the World Championship crown.

Having contemplated retirement during a few dark moments at the end of last season, when form and confidence deserted him, Selby is a renewed force this term.

His tally of 24 ranking titles brings him level with Neil Robertson on the all-time list, behind only Ronnie O’Sullivan (41), Stephen Hendry (36), John Higgins (31), Judd Trump (30), Steve Davis (28) and Mark Williams (26).

…

Maguire was playing in his first ranking final since 2020 but missed out on a sixth ranking title. Still, it’s a step forward for the 43-year-old Scot and the £45,000 prize crucially lifts him to 23rd on the Johnstone’s Paint One-Year list with the top 32 qualifying for next month’s World Grand Prix in Hong Kong.

After sharing the first session 4-4, Maguire had a chance to take the lead in the opening frame tonight, but missed the green off the last red when he led 55-36, and Selby cleared to edge ahead. Maguire’s run of 55 helped him take frame ten, then four-time World Champion Selby responded with a 67 to lead 6-5. The Englishman looked set to double his advantage until he missed a straight-forward red to a top corner on 60 in frame 12, and Maguire punished him with a fabulous 71 clearance which included a series of crafty shots to nudge reds off cushions.

After the interval, once again Selby edged ahead with a break of 60, then went two frames ahead for the first time since 3-1 with a superb 128 total clearance. In frame 15, Selby led 37-0 when he missed the pink to a centre pocket, but Maguire’s counter ended on 8 when he failed to cut a thin black to a top corner. And when he missed a difficult long red, he handed Selby the table to add a match-winning 30.

“At 6-5 I missed an easy red and the clearance Stephen made was ridiculous,” said Selby, who won his first ranking title at this event in 2008. “That could have been a turning point but I managed to get ahead again in the next frame. I had run of the ball at key moments, that can be the difference at this level. It’s great to see Stephen playing well and back in a final because he is a class act.

“It’s a special feeling. I am in a much better place than I was at the end of last season, when I shouldn’t have even played at the World Championship. I am enjoying it more and I feel I can still get better because there are a few parts of my game I can improve on.”

Maguire said: “I want to say thanks to the crowd, it was unreal to have that much support. When I made the clearance for 6-6 I wanted to carry on, the interval came at the wrong time for me. From 6-6 I hardly had a chance so all credit to Mark.”

All the detailed results are available on snooker.org.

Luca Brecel reached the semi-finals wre he was beaten by Mark Selby (6-3).
Neil Robertson and Wu Yize lost in the round of 32 to Tom Ford and Sanderson Lam respectively.

The event was played from December,18 to December, 20. Only the top ten ranked players were invited.This means that, from Grove, only Mark Selby, Ding Junhui and Luca Brecel took part.
All the detailed results are available on snooker.org.

Ding had to play a local qualifier in his first match. He beat him by 4-0. He then played Shaun Murphy, and beat him by 4-0, before losing in the quater-finals, by 4-0, to Ronnie O’Sullivan, the defending champion.

Mark Selby played Mark Allen in the Quarter-finals where he was seeded; It was his first match in the event and lost 4-2 to the eventual champion.

Luca Brecel entered the event in round 2. In his first match he beat Zhang Anda by 4-0. His quarter-final match wasn’t so easy but he won it: he beat Kyren Wilson, the reigning World Champion, by 4-3. Next for Luca was an semi-final encounter with Mark Williams. He beat the Welsh legend by 4-2.

In the final, Luca faced the in-form Mark Allen and was beaten by 5-1. Despite the setback, Luca was positive after the match. He said: “I made a few mistakes but Mark is really tough to play against. Overall I feel I’m getting better and I’m really looking forward to next year.”

All the detailed results are available on snooker.org

It wasn’t a great event for the Grove players.
Ding and Wu Yize reached the round of 16, beaten by Shaun Murphy and Mark Allen respectively. It’s worth noting though that Wu had to win three matches to get that far: He had beaten Ashley Carty, David Lilley and Si Jiahui to get this far.

Neil Robertson had won two qualifying matches before succumbing to Judd Trump, the eventual champion in the round of 32.
Mark Selby and Luca Brecel both fell at the first hurdle, beaten by Jack Lisowski and Jak Jones respectively