Xiao Guodong has won the Wuhan Open after beating Si Jiahui in a gripping final.
In only the third all-Chinese ranking final in the history of snooker, Xiao held his nerve and fought off a strong comeback from Si to land the Wuhan Open title.
Xiao, who has played on the professional tour for 17 years, had control throughout the final and at the end claimed a 10-7 win to get some silverware under his belt.
A massive winners cheque of £140,000 moves Xiao into 18th place in the world rankings – pushing him close to the world’s top 16. Before the tournament began he was ranked in 29th position.
Winning a maiden ranking title, caps a wonderful week for Xiao Guodong who beat world champion Kyren Wilson and Shaun Murphy en-route to the Wuhan Open final.
Si Jiahui went into the final with high confidence after a stunning victory over world number one Judd Trump in the semi-finals – which included a maximum 147 break. But Si failed to find the form in the final until it was too late.
‘A well earned win for Xiao Guodong’
Snooker fans have congratulated Xiao on a “deserved” victory in Wuhan.
One fan said on a Facebook post from World Snooker Tour: “Well done to him, a well earned win.”
Another fan commented: “Best player of the week. Deserved winner.”
And a third follower added: “Congratulations. Really kept his cool.”
Xiao’s triumph makes him mainland China’s seventh ranking event winner. He joins Judd Trump, Mark Selby and Kyren Wilson to have won ranking events this season. He has also booked a place in the Champion of Champions event next month.
The next ranking event on the World Snooker Tour is the Northern Ireland Open. The event will be held in Belfast between October 20 and October 27.
The next major ranking event in China will be the International Championship, which starts on November 3.
