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Ding wins marathon battle to lift second UK title
By Ma Yue |
December 15, 2009, Tuesday
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Print Edition
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CHINA'S Ding Junhui kept his cool in his 10-hour battle with Scottish world No. 1 John Higgins to win his second UK Championship 10-8 in Telford, England, late on Sunday.
The final stretched well past midnight.
It was not until the 13th frame that Higgins won two straight frames and moved into the lead for the first time at 7-6.
But Ding responded well with a 74 to make it 7-7.
Higgins fluffed an easy final brown in the 15th frame, which eventually cost him the title, as Ding held his nerve to take the frame and the next one to move within sight of victory.
Though Higgins recorded the first century of the match with a 115 to fight back to 8-9, Asia's most successful cueist scored 75 in the next frame to seize the championship at 10-8.
Ding won his first UK Championship in 2005. It is his first ranking tournament title in more than three years, which also made him the only non-UK player to have taken the crown twice.
With 8,000 points collected in Telford, 48-kilometer west of Birmingham, Ding topped the season ranking and is now 6th overall in world ranking. He walked away 100,000 pounds (US$162,462) richer in prize money, and a new-found maturity after four years of inconsistent runs.
"I've been enjoying this game very much. Sometimes I had bad shots, but I kept myself calm and told myself don't be angry. I've learned a lot from the past tournaments and collected lots of more experience," the 22-year-old Jiangsu Province native said.
Ding was crushed 3-10 by Ronnie O'Sullivan in the 2007 Masters final in London and was in the danger of slipping out of the top 16 in world ranking last year.
But he has regained his form this season after reaching the quarterfinals of the Shanghai Masters and the final of the Grand Prix in Glasgow, Scotland.
Ding beat Mike Dunn (9-5), Shaun Murphy (9-3), Allister Carter (9-8) and Stephen Maguire (9-5) before setting up the final against John Higgins, who upset Ronnie O'Sullivan 9-8 in the semifinal. It was Ding's third win against Higgins in ten attempts.
The final stretched well past midnight.
It was not until the 13th frame that Higgins won two straight frames and moved into the lead for the first time at 7-6.
But Ding responded well with a 74 to make it 7-7.
Higgins fluffed an easy final brown in the 15th frame, which eventually cost him the title, as Ding held his nerve to take the frame and the next one to move within sight of victory.
Though Higgins recorded the first century of the match with a 115 to fight back to 8-9, Asia's most successful cueist scored 75 in the next frame to seize the championship at 10-8.
Ding won his first UK Championship in 2005. It is his first ranking tournament title in more than three years, which also made him the only non-UK player to have taken the crown twice.
With 8,000 points collected in Telford, 48-kilometer west of Birmingham, Ding topped the season ranking and is now 6th overall in world ranking. He walked away 100,000 pounds (US$162,462) richer in prize money, and a new-found maturity after four years of inconsistent runs.
"I've been enjoying this game very much. Sometimes I had bad shots, but I kept myself calm and told myself don't be angry. I've learned a lot from the past tournaments and collected lots of more experience," the 22-year-old Jiangsu Province native said.
Ding was crushed 3-10 by Ronnie O'Sullivan in the 2007 Masters final in London and was in the danger of slipping out of the top 16 in world ranking last year.
But he has regained his form this season after reaching the quarterfinals of the Shanghai Masters and the final of the Grand Prix in Glasgow, Scotland.
Ding beat Mike Dunn (9-5), Shaun Murphy (9-3), Allister Carter (9-8) and Stephen Maguire (9-5) before setting up the final against John Higgins, who upset Ronnie O'Sullivan 9-8 in the semifinal. It was Ding's third win against Higgins in ten attempts.
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