The Crucible thriller went to a final frame decider with Wu Yize ultimately beating Shaun Murphy after one of the greatest World Championship finals ever
Wu Yize has become China’s second world champion after Zhao Xintong(Image: Getty Images)
Wu Yize has defeated Shaun Murphy in an epic final frame decider to win the World Snooker Championship. The pair traded blows throughout a thrilling final session, which will go down as one of the best in the Crucible’s storied history.
Wu had his chances before, including missing a black off its spot when 17-16 up and one frame from victory. However, following a safety exchange in the decider, the 22-year-old showed great bravery to pot a tough red to the middle pocket and clinch victory with an ice-cool break of 85.
Wu paid tribute to his parents during his post-match interview through a translator. He said: “My parents are the true champions. Since I made the decision to drop out of school, my Dad has been by my side, my mum has also gone through a lot over the years. They are the source of my strength, I love them so much.”
Murphy said: “I’d like to be the first to congratulate Wu Yize and his family, and everyone around him for being a wonderful world champion. I hate being right, I said sometime earlier in the season, we had a great game out in China somewhere, and I managed to win that one.
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“I came out afterwards and said that he would be world champion one day, it’s just a real shame that it was today, but I couldn’t have given it anymore, I couldn’t have tried harder. I played the best shots I could have played and I didn’t get my chance. I couldn’t do any more than that.”
Play resumed with Wu 13-12 up, having won the final three frames of the afternoon session. And he made it four with a classy break of 88 to extend his lead to two, only for Murphy to hit back with a break of 82.
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Frame 28 could have gone either way but it was Murphy who made the most telling contributions to make it 14-14. Murphy looked like taking the next, only to miss a green at 56-19 up. Wu had little margin for error but held his nerve to win it on the black and retake the lead before the mid-season interval.
In the next frame, it was Murphy’s turn to steal. Wu was 70-0 up, only for the break to break down and Murphy swept in to level things at 15-15. Momentum continued to swing one way and then the other, with Wu going 16-15 up, largely thanks to a break of 57.
Murphy then tied it up again with a glorious clearance of 131, including a cheeky double on the final black, which left the Crucible crowd in raptures.
In a match of huge moments, there was another in the 33rd frame, which went to Wu despite Murphy taking a 45-0 lead. As he attempted to clear up, Wu was faced with a really tough yellow on the baulk cushion with the rest. He bravely took it on, potted it and took the frame to go within one of victory.
He looked on course for a match-winning break in frame 34, only to miss the black off its spot at 43 up. Murphy cleared up to force a decider, which a match of this quality deserved.
Murphy started it by potting a long red before a rare safety exchange. However, Wu broke the deadlock with a superb red in the circumstances before clinching victory with a break of 85.
