Shaun Murphy held his nerve against snooker’s world champion, Kyren Wilson, to win his second Masters title and bank a cool £350,000 in prize money.
Murphy, 42, came into Sunday night’s second and final session firmly in the driving seat, with ‘the Magician’ conjuring up a 6-2 lead earlier in the day. Wilson battled back before Murphy eventually pulled off an 10-7 win in the best of 19 frames, lifting the Paul Hunter Trophy inside a packed Alexandra Palace.
Last year’s World Championship winner, Wilson, took the first frame of the second session, closing the gap to three. Harlow-born Murphy responded twice to boast an 8-4 lead at the mid-session break, with victory in his sights.
But then, for the first time in the final, Kettering’s Wilson won back-to-back frames and then a third, setting up a tense finale with only one frame in it. The momentum suddenly shifted again, as Murphy finally got a grip on the evening session and took a 9-7 lead with a maximum of three frames remaining. There was even a re-rack in the next frame, as Murphy sealed it with a century break.
Murphy will now pocket the biggest first prize in the 50-year history of the Masters, up a whopping £100,000 on last year’s reward. In beating 33-year-old Wilson, who’ll take home £140,000, Murphy ended his 10-year wait to win one of the Triple Crown tournaments, having claimed the Masters in 2015.
That year, Murphy hammered Neil Robertson 10-2 to become only the 10th player to complete the Triple Crown. He was forced to endure a barren spell over the next decade but his torment is now over.
Murphy had to come from behind to reach the final, beating Mark Allen 6-3. During his fightback, he crafted a stunning 147 break. In the other semi-final, Wilson beat current world No.1 Judd Trump.
After his win, a jubilant Murphy told BBC Two: “I can’t believe it, I’m in shock – if I’m totally honest I thought these days were gone. When I lost to Mark Selby in 2021 at the Crucible, I thought my days in the business end of these events had gone.
“But I’ve teamed up with Peter Ebdon, he’s helped me rediscover that self-belief, he’s helped remind me I used to be quite good at this. And there’s still a bit of life in the old dog yet.”
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Wilson admitted: “I just made it too easy for Shaun today, I threw him in the balls too many times and you can’t do that with how well Shaun’s been playing this week. I proved why I’m the world champion, I fought as hard as I could.
“From 8-4 down, a lot of people would have written me off and if the red goes in at 8-7, that could have been my clearance for 8-8 and you might be looking at the different scoreline. But every credit to Shaun – well done to Shaun.
“I’m 33, coming into my prime and I’m having an amazing season. Being runner-up is obviously not what I want to be, but we’ve got Berlin next week so I’ll go and smash it in Germany.
“I’ve got such a great family unit, so many friends and family that have come down to support me. I’m a lucky lad, win or lose. What an amazing venue, every credit to World Snooker and the sponsors. The crowd have been amazing all week.”
The BBC announced just after 7pm that they’d agreed a deal with the World Snooker Tour to extend their broadcast agreement until 2032. The new deal marks a five-year extension to the current agreement, ensuring that the sport’s Triple Crown events – the World Championship, UK Championship and the Masters – remain on free-to-air television.
Director of BBC Sport Alex Kay-Jelski said: “Snooker has been a cornerstone of BBC Sport programming since 1969, and extending our partnership with World Snooker until 2032 is fantastic news for the audience. It ensures the drama, intensity and excitement of the Triple Crown events remains free-to-air and we look forward to many more years of iconic sporting moments.”
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