Luca Brecel has held off a spirited challenge from Mark Selby to win the World Snooker Championship.
The Belgian was forced to withstand two separate comebacks and a 147 break from the four-time champion across the two days before eventually prevailing by an 18-15 scoreline.
Brecel, the ninth seed, becomes world champion having initially entered this tournament without ever recording a victory at the Crucible.
Resuming the final session with a 15-10 advantage, Brecel quickly extended his lead to six frames with a composed 67, but Selby was always likely to mount the pressure on his opponent when there was minimal margin for error.
History for Belgium.
— World Snooker Tour (@WeAreWST) May 1, 2023
History for Snooker.
Luca Brecel becomes the first player from mainland Europe to lift the World Championship! 🇧🇪#CazooWorldChampionship | @CazooUK pic.twitter.com/YT1MePDlr2
After reducing the deficit with a 78 break, Selby dug deep to make it 16-12, and the momentum was with the Englishman as he went on to compile a 122 before the interval.
Successive half-centuries saw the gap become one, but luck turned in Brecel's favour in the 32nd frame as he capitalised on a number of missed opportunities for his opponent.
However, there was nothing fortunate about how Brecel closed the match, making a 112 break without reply as he closed out one of the most memorable campaigns in the history of the tournament.
