Mark Allen wins English Open in 9-8 decider over Zhou Yuelong

Mark Allen clinched the BetVictor English Open in dramatic fashion on Sunday night, edging Zhou Yuelong 9-8 in a deciding frame at the Brentwood Centre in Essex. The Northern Irishman sealed victory in the final frame with a run of 61, the match finishing at about 12.20am on Monday, to lift the Steve Davis trophy and collect the £100,000 winner's cheque.

Allen, 39, had looked in control after the afternoon session when he built a 6-2 lead, but Zhou mounted a ferocious comeback in the evening to lead 8-7 and came within a single frame of his first ranking title. Allen forced a decider with a break of 71 in the 16th frame before completing his sixth successive deciding-frame win of the week with his run in the final. It is Allen's 12th career ranking title and his first in 19 months.

"I want to win as many different tournaments as I can," Allen said afterwards, reflecting on longstanding goals that still elude him. "The Welsh Open is the only Home Nations I have not won. Then the World Championship. Those are the two that stand out for me." He added that the week had required immense resilience, saying many players would have given up in the positions he faced and that the...