Kyren Wilson has won his first World Snooker Championship at the Crucible, beating Welshman Jak Jones 18-14.
After beginning the match with a century break, Wilson used his momentum to extend his lead to 7-0 in the first session.
The unseeded Jones , who had played 6 games including qualifiers to progress to the final, started nervously and took until the end of the first session to get a frame on the board.
Alex Petrov, 36, who attended the final, said: “Jak has been a little disappointing, missing simple, easy shots”.
He added: “There is a reason Kyren is called the warrior”.
However, by the end of the Sunday Jones had pulled back 5 frames, leaving the overnight score at 11-6 to Wilson.
Jones, who was a 200-1 outsider at the start of the tournament, looked destined to be beaten by Wilson, and on Monday, Jak came into the game even more as the underdog as he had been at the start.
Liam Morris, 38, who attended the final, said: “We all love an underdog, and we really like the fact that he’s a qualifier, and it would be great if he went on and won it, but now, with a five frame advantage going into the final session it’s a bit too much”.
On Monday, both players went back and forth, missing easy chances, but going into the final session of the match, Wilson led 17-11 with one frame needed to clinch the title.
Ryan Emo, 24, who attended the final, said: “Kyren Wilson was playing like it was a game of rugby, I’d say he’s just kicking penalties, you know, keeping the points ticking over. He got a good start”.
However, Jones managed to reel off three superb frames, even coming close to a 147 break, but ultimately Wilson managed to get over the line with a 42 break to win.
Speaking to BBC Two, Wilson said: “I have given everything, I held myself together, kept myself composed and Jak fought and fought and made it so difficult for me”.
Whilst there was no fairytale ending for the Welshman, Jones, who earnt the respect from the intimate Crucible crowd, will hold his head high with his efforts in the tournament.
Beating the likes of previous Crucible winners Judd Trump and Stuart Bingham, he now moves to 14th in the world rankings.
Wilson will walk away with £500,000 to his name and has now become 3rd in the world rankings, and his name etched on the World Championship trophy forever.
