Shaun Murphy wins the Grand Prix trophy defeating rival Stuart Bingham in an epic match that went to the wire. It was a final that finals should be made of, with some fantastic snooker,
The match started with Murphy having a comfortable advantage at 4-0 going into the mid session interval, however the tide turned after the break and Bingham took the next 5 frames to lead 5-4 at the end of the afternoon session.
In the evening session, frames started off by going Bingham’s way until at 6-4, Bingham went for a black and it bounced out of the pocket which turned the tide of the contest again. Murphy managed to claw his way back into the match and eventually the match went 9-9.
In the deciding frame, Murphy made a mess of a few shots but eventually he managed to pot a really good long red which he converted into a match winning break. The final score of the Grand Prix final was 10-9 Shaun Murphy.
Murphy delighted to have won, felt that he has taken back some of the loss he incurred in the world championships last year losing to Bingham in the final. This is the first ranking event win for Murphy all year and even though he won this tournament, he still remains No.4 in the world.
Confidence must be high now for Murphy going into the latter part of the season with this win. He will be hoping to do well in the players championship, China open and the world championships.
Stuart Bingham will also be delighted with his performance this week, even though he hasn’t played at his best, he has been able to graft through matches which have turned into results which is positive coming up to the world championships.
