With celebrities aplenty in Âattendance and a protester bursting on to the Âhallowed Crucible floor, at one stage on Sunday there threatened to be more Âheadlines off the baize than on it during the opening half of snooker’s two-day extravaganza to crown its world champion.
But by Sunday evening and as the halfway point of the final between Shaun Murphy and Wu Yize approached, both Âcompetitors ensured all the talk will be about what is to follow on Monday afternoon and Âevening inside one of sport’s most famous buildings.
There is history to be made Âirrespective of who triumphs at some stage on Monday. If it is Murphy who claims his Âsecond world title, that would break the record for the longest gaps between world titles by some distance: ÂMurphy’s maiden win was way back in 2005 when he was only 22.
But after Zhao Xintong’s Âhistoric victory last year burst open the boundaries of possibility for ÂChinese snooker, there is now the very Ârealistic chance of back-to-back and Âdifferent champions from China. Should Wu win, it would lean into a wider story of a younger generation of stars taking control of the baize.
He would be the fourth first-time winner in the past four years after Kyren Wilson, Luca Brecel and Zhao. With these narratives in mind, it is not unreasonable to question whether Monday provides a seminal moment for snooker’s direction.
Murphy perhaps symbolically represents the hopes of an older generation; only two men – Ronnie O’Sullivan and Mark Williams – have won the tournament in their 40s this century. Snooker is fast becoming a young man’s game and the Âemergence of Wu here has suggested most of the tidal wave of young talent continues to come from China.
The times may well be changing for good in snooker but there is a long way to go before we can be Âdefinitive on that count after a Âcompelling opening day. The first eight frames in Sunday’s afternoon session were split equally; a good achievement for Wu given he was in action until almost midnight on Saturday in his dramatic victory over Mark Allen.
But there was no real slumber from 22-year-old Wu, who is attempting to win only his second ranking event after a triumph in the International Championship five months ago. He moved into a 3-0 lead, albeit not with the kind of glistening, error-free snooker he has produced on Âoccasions over the past fortnight.
In the third of those frames a female spectator jumped the Âbarriers and shouted out what many Âperceived to be comments about the TV licence fee. She was promptly stopped by the referee, Rob Spencer, whose Âexperience as a police officer may well have come in handy in ensuring a swift end to the drama.
But that interruption came at the same time Murphy himself seemed to wake from his malaise. The ÂMagician had been wasteful and sloppy inside the opening hour or so but breaks of 85, 98, 77 and 109 in the blink of an eye transformed what had Âthreatened to be a nightmare opening session into one where he found himself 4-3 ahead.
Wu looked as though he was perhaps wilting, finally being affected by Saturday night’s late show in Sheffield. But just as he did on several occasions in the semi-final, he roared back from nowhere to claim the eighth and final frame of the afternoon session to level matters.
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You felt with the early nerves shaken off, the evening session would be of a higher standard. And how Wu seemed to thrive. Chris Woakes, one of several sporting stars in Âattendance on Sunday alongside the likes of David ÂSeaman, was among those applauding as Wu made a stunning 103 break as the youngster started with intent in the evening.
He would win three of the first four frames with the brand of snooker for which he has quickly become renowned: high-risk but in the same breath, fearless. Wu moved into an 8-5 lead with such swagger it was as if he were playing a Âpractice match at his local club, not the Âbiggest Âtournament of them all with the weight of a nation on his shoulders.
But Murphy is granite in these moments. He battled valiantly to make it 9-7 going into the final frame but crucially, Wu won the last frame of the day to go three ahead overnight. The first to 18 is crowned champion on Monday: have the coffee on standby, because this could be a late finish for the ages.