Judd Trump joins Alex Higgins, Mark Williams, John Higgins and Neil Robertson as two-time Masters champions Venue: Alexandra Palace, London Dates: 8 January-15 January Coverage: Watch live on BBC TV and Red Button with uninterrupted BBC coverage iPlayer, the BBC Sport website and the BBC Sport app
Judd Trump won his second Masters title with a dramatic 10-8 victory over Mark Williams at Alexandra Palace.
Trump, whose first title came in 2019, was forced to dig deep to become the 11th player to win the tournament more than once.
He led 5-3 in the evening session but then fought back from 7-6 and 8-7 in a thrilling encounter.
His win saw him take home the top prize of £250,000, with Williams taking home £100,000.
Williams was picked as the pre-match favorite by Trump and was aiming to become the oldest Masters champion at 47 years and 300 days.
The Welshman last won the title 20 years ago and his appearance against Trump was almost 25 years after his epic victory over Stephen Hendry when the Englishman was still in primary school.
Trump’s victory, sealed with a magnificent break of 126 to huge cheers from a raucous crowd, may go down as one of his best as he clinched a fourth Triple Crown success the hard way.
“It’s really amazing,” Trump told BBC Sport. “I was completely outplayed the whole game. Down 8-7 I was gone and trying to keep going. I should have dropped in the first round, I should have dropped in the second round and I should have lost this one, I’m like a cat.
“I think with the way I played this week, this is my best performance to win this. I wasn’t playing well. I missed balls over the pockets by a mile.
“Mark’s long game was incredible. He put me under so much pressure. I’ve never been able to get two behind and this is my best win so far.”
Trump accepts a thriller
Although neither player was at his best in the afternoon session, Sunday night’s resumption looked like a continuation of their remarkable World Cup semi-final last April.
That contest featured eight centuries and 15 half-centuries before England’s Trump emerged victorious.
Williams made some trademark long pots and a break of 50 to take a frame back, but Trump, seeking his first trophy since the Turkish Masters in March 2022, responded with a 66 to immediately restore his two-frame advantage.
A break of 80 and a run of 52 saw Williams level at 6-6 to leave the match delicately level at the mid-session interval before taking a tense 13th frame.
A protracted 14th frame, containing several nervy tactical exchanges and lasting 58 minutes, saw Trump claw back to 7-7, but Williams regained her rhythm in the next with a sublime 107 that showed little sign of nerves.
As the tension mounted in the 16th frame, both players miscalculated and left the other options before Trump played a fantastic double on his way to 8-8.
And in a thrilling finale, Trump completed the win in superb fashion with a half-century and a century to become a multiple Masters winner.
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