Luca Brecel has won his third ranking title with victory in the Championship League on Friday in Leicester.
The Belgian Bullet came through a tight group in Stage Three of the competition before overcoming Lu Ning in the final at the Morningside Arena.
After almost five weeks, the elongated first ranking tournament of the 2022/23 snooker season came down to the last eight contenders and two final groups.
Lu took control of Group 1 with victories over Stuart Bingham and Pang Junxu guaranteeing his berth in the final.
In Group 2, Brecel lost his first match of the round-robin after a 3-1 reverse against Xiao Guodong, but the 27 year-old turned things around with a whitewash win over Lyu Haotian.
The reigning Scottish Open champion needed a similar success in his remaining fixture to have a chance of finishing on top of his tight group.
Brecel duly delivered by thumping early table-topper Zhao Xintong 3-0 in a repeat of their UK Championship final showdown.
A high-scoring Championship League final between Brecel and Lu ensued.
Lu’s break of 67 wasn’t enough to take the opening frame as he lost it on the black, but the Chinese cueist responded with a 73 contribution to keep alive his chances of a maiden ranking crown.
However, Brecel was not to be denied and tallied runs of 72 and a tidy century to wrap up the glory and £33,000.
It represents a third career ranking title for Brecel, adding to the China Championship he claimed in 2017 and the Scottish Open from last year.
Featured photo credit: Championship League Snooker
