Neil Robertson and Wu Yize served us a wonderful final yesterday. The evening session in particular was thrilling. Wu had struggled to settle in the afternoon and, when the match resumed in the evening he was 7-1 down. Nobody was giving him a chance, especially when it went 8-2 and Neil only need one more….
But … what happens from then on was quite extraordinary. Wu relaxed, played the way we know he can and won five frames on the spin before Neil eventually was able to get over the line. Here is the report by WST:
ROBERTSON HOLDS OFF WU IN THRILLING FINAL
Neil Robertson survived a stunning fightback from China’s Wu Yize to win the BetVictor English Open final 9-7 and secure his first ranking crown in over two years.
Australia’s 2010 World Champion Robertson had looked to be surging to victory when he stormed to an 8-2 lead over his 20-year-old counterpart. However, the talented Wu blitzed back into contention to ensure a nerve shredding finish.
The Thunder from Down Under has endured a trophy drought since his epic 10-9 win over John Higgins at the 2022 Tour Championship. That came during a season where he secured three ranking crowns. However, since then Robertson has struggled to find his form.
After failing to qualify for this year’s World Championship, the Melbourne cueman embarked on a summer boot camp to rediscover his brilliant best. He’s also been working with fellow professional and close friend Joe Perry in a coaching capacity.
The slump in form saw Robertson enter this week’s event ranked 26th in the world, but the £100,000 top prize sees him leap back up to 15th in the world. It means four-time World Champion Higgins loses his spot in the elite 16 for the first time since 1995.
It’s been a landmark week for Wu despite the defeat. He breaks into the top 32 for the first time, moving into 31st position. It was Wu’s maiden ranking final and he defeated the likes of world number one Judd Trump, Stuart Bingham and Ali Carter to get there.
With today’s match seemingly beyond Wu’s reach at 8-2, the former Rookie of the Year summoned a dazzling burst to stay in contention. Breaks of 100, 82 and 73 thrilled the Brentwood crowd, who had looked set to only witness a handful of frames this evening.
That left Wu 8-5 behind and a fluked opening red in frame 14 led to a break of 95, which narrowed the gap to just two frames. A contribution of 50 then helped the former World Under-21 Champion to claw within one at 8-7.
The penultimate frame saw the white situated at the black end with both players gradually shifting reds up the table into an ominously open situation.
Robertson eventually fluked a red into the yellow pocket and pounced with a critical break of 55 to leave Wu needing snookers. It was enough to see him edge over the line for the 24th ranking event victory of his career.
“I haven’t won for a couple of years and I was looking great at 8-2. I played brilliantly in the first session and capitalised on every minor error he had. I then had everything thrown at me,” said 42-year-old Robertson.
“I was trying to use little bits of motivation to stay calm. There wasn’t much I could do, because he played amazing. It is just about keeping my composure at all times. You need to be ready for when the chance comes your way and I was.
“This was the last opportunity for me to win with my dad Ian over, before he goes back to Australia. He’s a man of very few words, but he will be chuffed to bits tonight. I’ve spent 20 years as a professional and he’s never seen me win a final in person. I’m really happy to get one for him.
“Up until 8-2 in the final, you could argue this was the best I’ve ever played in a tournament. I controlled so many matches and only conceded five frames to get to the final. I am really pleased with everything. It is nice to get a win with Joe Perry in my corner. There may have been people questioning if it was working with him and this proves it definitely is.”
Wu said: “I think for the second half of the match I was into it and under no pressure. I felt really good, but it was a little bit too late. This was my first final, so I felt a bit of pressure in the afternoon.
“I wasn’t setting myself any goal in this match. In the last 16 I played Judd and I wanted to beat him. I got my revenge and did that. It was great to play in the final in front of such a great crowd. There are no regrets from me.”
MATCH HIGHLIGHTS
And some videos shared by ES on their youtube channel:
The start of the comeback…
The end of the match
Wu Yize, I’m sure, has won himself a lot of fan yesterday. He showed so much heart out there. He should be proud of himself. It was great to see him being interviewed on the floor by Tai Chengzhe.
Neil Robertson returns and Wu Yize compared to snooker great after epic English Open final
Phil Haigh
Neil Robertson eventually held off the challenge of Wu Yize (Picture: Getty Imag
Neil Robertson returned to the winner’s circle on Sunday night, but only after being pushed hard by 20-year-old Wu Yize in a brilliant English Open final.
It was the Chinese youngster’s first ranking final and looked like it was going to end very badly for him as he slipped to 7-1 behind against the former world champion.
He is clearly made of stern stuff, though, as the evening session saw Wu play some incredible snooker, winning six out of seven frames with breaks of 127, 100, 82, 73, 95 and 50.
Robertson had gone from leading 8-2 to just 8-7 and there was little he could do about it, but eventually the Australian got a chance and kept composed to get over the line in the 16th frame.
It is the 42-year-old’s 24th ranking title, but his first tournament win in over two years after a notably poor spell by his high standards.
After the barrage of scoring from Wu, he was relieved to get his hands on the trophy, especially with his family in attendance and thanks to his work with friend and now mentor Joe Perry.
‘He completely froze me out, he played some of the best snooker I’ve ever seen in that five or six frame spell. Inspired stuff,’ Robertson told Eurosport.
Neil Robertson had not won a title since the 2022 Tour Championship (Picture: Getty Images)
‘It wasn’t looking good at one stage. You start thinking of runner-up speeches and how humble you’re going to have to be after being 8-2 up!’
‘It means everything. My dad’s here and he’s never even seen me play in a final before. 20 years I’ve been pro and he’s not been in the country when I’ve been doing well. This is the first title I’ve been able to win with my dad here, which means the world to me. My kids here and [wife] Mille as well and this is the first tournament I’ve won with Joe and I working together. It’s a lot of firsts and hopefully there’ll be many more.’
Wu came up short but it was a fabulous week for him, beating the likes of Judd Trump, Stuart Bingham and Ali Carter on his way to the final and picking up £45,000.
Former Masters champion Alan McManus has been touting the young talent for greatness since he got on tour in 2021 and says Wu reminds him of four-time world champion John Higgins.
‘I’ve been a fan of him for a few years, but it just dawned on me tonight. I know he’s not in this class, not anywhere near it, but he reminds me of John Higgins,’ said McManus. ‘I witnessed John as a kid come of age very, very quickly at this level and I thought, my goodness we’re seeing something incredibly special.
‘Neil was a bystander for four or five frames, pretty much, and that takes something incredibly special. We have not seen the last of Wu Yize, not by a long shot, he’s going to win these things.’
Wu Yize won plenty of new fans with his performances in Brentwood (Picture: Getty Images)
Robertson was suitably impressed by his opponent, giving him a hug after the match and feeling like he is already excelling in all parts of the game, significantly improving from their Crucible meeting in 2023.
‘I haven’t really recovered from that onslaught just yet,’ said the Thunder from Down Under. ‘He just kept slamming balls in from an inch off the cushion and making clearances!
‘When I played him in the World Championship I said he has something very special about him. What he’s added to his game now is he’s very smart, he put me in more trouble with his safety than any other player this week.
‘He’s obviously very aggressive when he gets in, so he’s got a wonderful all round game. He’s got a brilliant temperament, never gives in.’
The £100,000 win for Robertson means the Australian climbs back into the top 16 (#15) in the rankings and Higgins slips out of the elite group.
It is an historic moment as the Scot is outside of the top 16 for the first time in 29 years after a record, having shown incredible consistency since turning professional in 1992.
The 49-year-old did enjoy a remarkable moment in Brentwood last week, though, making the 1000th century of his career in a last 16 defeat to Mark Allen and becoming only the second player after Ronnie O’Sullivan to reach that landmark.
The way the rankings work, it could be a very short stay outside the top 16 for the Wizard of Wishaw as a good run at this week’s British Open could see him move straight back up from his current spot of 17.
2 thoughts on “Neil Robertson is the 2024 English Open Champion”
Yes, it was extraordinary. It went from being an one-sided uncompetitive match, to a gripping finale! You say Wu “played the way we know he can”, but actually very few people will have seen that before. I am fortunate to have seen him in practice, but have only seen him produce his best form occasionally in a match. That’s the biggest issue with any young player: how to win matches without playing brilliantly. Had Wu ‘escaped’ with even a 6-2 defecit from the first session, it might have made a difference in the end!
It was indeed good to see the post-match interview, but WST are still relying on the generosity of Tai Chenzhi, when available. Also Rob Walker (otherwise a very versatile broadcaster) still shows uncertainty when dealing with foreign players (with interpreters or not).
Neil Robertson was clearly very nervous by the end. There was a lot of deliberation with his final break. Perhaps that was just the huge significance of this win in his career, but it is a sign that he may never completely recover the fluency and dominance of his best times. But of course there is no substitute for experience in winning.
Wu Yize was amazing. I felt sorry for the people with tickets for the evening session, but they were given a treat. And his game is also good to watch.
Ronnie O'Sullivan 
Yes, it was extraordinary. It went from being an one-sided uncompetitive match, to a gripping finale! You say Wu “played the way we know he can”, but actually very few people will have seen that before. I am fortunate to have seen him in practice, but have only seen him produce his best form occasionally in a match. That’s the biggest issue with any young player: how to win matches without playing brilliantly. Had Wu ‘escaped’ with even a 6-2 defecit from the first session, it might have made a difference in the end!
It was indeed good to see the post-match interview, but WST are still relying on the generosity of Tai Chenzhi, when available. Also Rob Walker (otherwise a very versatile broadcaster) still shows uncertainty when dealing with foreign players (with interpreters or not).
Neil Robertson was clearly very nervous by the end. There was a lot of deliberation with his final break. Perhaps that was just the huge significance of this win in his career, but it is a sign that he may never completely recover the fluency and dominance of his best times. But of course there is no substitute for experience in winning.
Wu Yize was amazing. I felt sorry for the people with tickets for the evening session, but they were given a treat. And his game is also good to watch.