Brecel beat Mark Selby 18–15 in the snooker WC final. He is the first Belgian snooker World Championship winner.
Belgium Luca Brecel, 28, celebrates snooker World Cup gold. The championship is Brecel’s first. In the final played at the Crucible Theatre, he defeated the four-time world champion, England’s 39-year-old By Mark Selby batch 18–15.
Brecel is the first Belgian snooker World Cup winner. All previous champions have come from Great Britain, Ireland, Australia or Canada.
– Great. I can’t see anything anymore. I don’t know why, Brecel sensitized to BBC (switch to another service).
– The popularity of snooker will explode in Europe. I was really nervous because I wanted it to happen for Belgium and Europe. Now I can’t wait to see what happens. I’m really glad I did it, Brecel said.
After Sunday’s opening day, the situation was 9-8 for Brecel. On Sunday, Selby bagged a hitting streak of 147 points, i.e. the maximum break, as the first player in the World Cup final.
– Congratulations to Luca. He is a great talent and a great guy with a great family. “Enjoy this year, you deserved it, you played fantastic,” Selby said.
– It was great to make the maximum break in the Crucible, I never thought I would make it in the final. I remember that atmosphere for the rest of my life. But now it’s not about me, Luka played fantastic, Selby said.
Brecel jumped out to a 15–10 lead in Monday’s first session. The Belgian also started the last period well and took a 16–10 lead, two sets away from victory.
However, Selby did not give up, but won six sets in a row as Brecel started making mistakes. The score was 16–15 for Brecel and it looked like Selby would be level.
– Selby is the worst possible opponent in the final. He just keeps coming back, he’s a real fighter. When it was 16-15, I wasn’t thinking about winning. “I wasn’t hitting the balls, but then I got a good break,” Brecel said.
Brecel was able to grab the next set and won the WC gold by conquering the next set as well.