Mark Selby has won the 2015 China Open after thrashing Gary Wilson 10-2 in the final on Sunday.
In a match that pitted the world no.1 against the no.56 in the rankings, Selby dominated the contest from start to finish, growing in confidence as he pulled further clear and ensuring that his opponent never had much of a sniff.
That being said, Wilson will rue missed opportunities in five out of the opening six frames as Selby punished the mistakes to establish a 5-1 lead.
From there it was one-way traffic and Selby began to play with freedom, strutting his stuff with a mesmerizing 145 total clearance in the seventh frame.
The ‘Jester’ added the last two frames before the end of the first session and began the evening bout of play with a 136 total clearance to go to within a frame of victory.
Wilson at the very least go the chance to show off his capabilities as he compiled an excellent 101 in winning his second frame, adding to his earlier run of 91.
However, Selby immediately got in among the balls in the subsequent frame and after a few small contributions landed his sixth ranking event title.
Selby’s success counts as third-time lucky in Beijing following previous final defeats in the capital city in 2011 and 2013.
Having lost eight out of his first 11 ranking event finals in his career until the World Championship last year, Selby has now won three on the bounce to firmly dispel any queries of him being a poor finisher in tournaments.
Indeed, the 31 year-old is the only competitor this season who has bagged two ranking events – following his German Masters triumph in February.
Some may point to a kind draw this week, where he didn’t have to play a single top 16 player, but you can only beat who is put in front of you and he excelled in his semi-final victory over Kurt Maflin and then his final defeat of Wilson today.
For Wilson it will be a disappointing end to what has been a breakthrough tournament for the 29 year-old and he’ll make a considerable jump up the rankings with his £35,000 pay packet.
Focus for both, and indeed all the players on the circuit, now turns to the season-ending World Championship in Sheffield.
For those, including Wilson, ranked outside of the top 16 there’s the dreaded three-round qualifiers in Ponds Forge starting on Wednesday.
Selby, though, will be preparing for his title defence which starts on the 18th April, as he bids to break the Crucible curse and become the first first-time champion to lift the trophy on his return.
