Kyren Wilson wins the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open, crushing Judd Trump 9-3 to lift the Alex Higgins trophy and £100,000 at Waterfront Hall in Belfast; “It’s good for the future of snooker,” says ‘The Warrior’ Wilson
Last Updated: 27/10/24 9:27pm
Kyren Wilson demolished Judd Trump to claim the Northern Ireland Open title
World Champion Kyren Wilson trounced world No 1 Judd Trump 9-3 to win the Northern Ireland Open title on Sunday.
Wilson raced into a 7-1 lead in the opening session at the Waterfront Hall and sealed a comprehensive victory in the ideal fashion with his only century of a surprisingly one-sided contest.
“I felt like the only thing missing from me today was a century so it’s ended up with the icing on the cake today,” Wilson told Eurosport.
“What Judd’s been achieving just lately is inspiring, to be as dominant as he has been with the sort of standard on tour nowadays is absolutely phenomenal and I don’t know where he gets the stamina from.
“He makes me raise my game and we can’t keep relying on the class of ’92 (Ronnie O’Sullivan, John Higgins and Mark Williams) all the time, so I’m glad I’m up there with him and can beat him. It’s good for the future of snooker.”
Breaks of 58, 81, 77, 77 and 88 helped Wilson into a dream 6-0 lead.
The seventh frame came down to a safety battle on the brown, which was won by Wilson, who cleared to the black to establish a 7-0 advantage.
Trump summoned a defiant run of 83 to give himself a glimmer of hope.
Trump hits a 143 century in the eleventh frame to keep his hopes alive, but Wilson sealed victory in style with a break of 119.
Wilson revealed that his mother Sonya, who was in Belfast to see his victory, had recently recovered from breast cancer, adding: “We found out round about the World Championship so to win that for her was amazing and then for her to spend a week here is brilliant.
“She’s loved it this week.”
Judd Trump suffered a surprise defeat at the hands of Wilson
Defending champion Trump, who was seeking a record-extending fifth win in the event, admitted Wilson was a worthy winner.
“I think Kyren was obviously too good today,” Trump said.
“The way he’s bounced back after winning the World Championship is inspiring, it’s nice to see someone that’s able to kick on and hopefully in the future now we can have many more battles.”
Crucible king Wilson defeated Jak Jones 18-14 to become World Champion for the first time.
‘The Warrior’ defeated Trump 10-8 in the final of the inaugural Xi’an Grand Prix to win his seventh ranking title.
And a dominant opening session has helped him to another huge win over ‘The Ace in the Pack’ Trump.
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