Sensational Ding wins Welsh Open snooker title

Ding Junhui defeated Mark Selby 9-6 to win the 20^th edition of the Welsh Open tournament. The player, nicknamed ‘The Chinese Sensation’, lead world number one Mark Selby 5-3 after the first session and continued his good run in order to lift the Welsh trophy.

The Newport Centre from Wales was packed with snooker fans who were expecting to see who the winner of this year’s Welsh Open competition would be, while witnessing some cracking cue action.

Nothing easier to accomplish for the players who entered the first session mini-break all squared up at two apiece, Selby using breaks of 103 and 124, while Ding responded with a 64 and a modest 26.

Still, after the interval the Chinese player put his nose in front at 4-2 hitting in runs of 40 and 90, his opponent just managing to pull back one frame with a 66.

A few minutes later the scoreboard was freezing at 5-3, Ding’s 51 break assuring him of starting the evening session with a two-frame advantage.

The match restarted with a quite revived Mark Selby and his 73 break that was reducing the gap between him and his opponent at just one point. But Ding wasn’t very satisfied with the situation a break of 83 reinsuring his domination.

One more try was made by the Englishman, this time with a 91 break, to which Ding replayed with an avalanche of 124 and 130 that was sending him one step closer to victory at 8-5.

The 2011 Shanghai Masters champion didn’t give up using a great 145 break (the highest of the tournament) to win the 14^th frame, but it was a bit too late.

Ding was sealing his 9-6 victory right after the next frame with a top break of 42.

So after seven days of intense cueing and after defeating the 2011 Welsh Open champion John Higgins in the process, China’s Ding Junhui stops the ‘trophy draught’after more than a year since winning the Masters and three more since the 2009 UK Championship victory.

Ramona Dragomir