Anthony McGill Wins Indian Open

Anthony McGill has won the Indian Open after beating Kyren Wilson 5-2 in the final in Hyderabad – his first ranking event success.

In a battle of two of the sport’s best young emerging stars, the Scot took control of the contest after the scores were tied at 2-2, reeling off the last three frames for an assured victory.

Earlier in the day, McGill had beaten Shaun Murphy in the semi-finals while he enjoyed excellent triumphs over former world champion Stuart Bingham and countryman Stephen Maguire on Friday.

The 25 year-old, who pockets £50,000, certainly deserved this crowning moment on his CV, one which will surely be bolstered by further trophies in the years to come.

And who knows how many finals will be played between the Glaswegian and Wilson, just one year McGill’s junior and who was himself seeking a second ranking title in as many seasons.

Despite holding onto his opponent’s coattails early on in Saturday’s final, Wilson, who recorded a relatively comfortable win over veteran Nigel Bond in the last four, was unable to prevent McGill from reaching the winning line first.

After a break of 96 helped McGill into the lead for the third time at 3-2, he never looked back and a cool clearance in the last ensured there wouldn’t be a tense conclusion.

McGill, who first turned professional in 2010, initially showed glimpses of his potential at the 2012 Scottish Open, a PTC event in which he lost in the final to Ding Junhui.

However, his stock grew much higher during the 2015 World Championship when defeats of Maguire and defending champion Mark Selby helped him to a surprise quarter-final appearance in Sheffield.

Results after that disappointed but the Crucible reignited his form this year as he again upset the odds by ousting Murphy in the first round.

It seemed only a matter of time that he would be featuring more regularly at the business end of the events.

Some may argue that the Indian Open is devalued with the likes of Ronnie O’Sullivan, Neil Robertson, Ding and Selby not in attendance but a look at the names McGill has beaten will surely convince anybody that he earned his success the hard way.

For Wilson, it will be a disappointing climax to an otherwise great week for the Kettering cueist.

The Englishman continues to improve and it would not be surprising to see these two battle each other regularly over the course of the next decade and more.

Overall, the Indian Open came and went a little unnoticed.

There were problems with the Eurosport Player early in the tournament, issues which were only resolved in time for the last two days of play.

The fact that it’s a subscription service and isn’t available to those outside of Europe further alienates the potential viewer, while the event’s scheduling in the middle of the summer isn’t exactly a winner either.

But those are qualms that Anthony McGill will have no worries about, and the Scot is definitely a worthy winner now.