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Judd Trump and Kyren Wilson’s meeting in the inaugural Xi’an Grand Prix final in China lived up to its pre-match billing in the first session, with Wilson edging it 5-4 in a tense title battle.
With Trump reclaiming the world No. 1 spot from Mark Allen after reaching the final, and world champion Wilson displaying the matchplay form that saw him claim the sport’s biggest prize in May, the best-of-19 frame final always looked likely to be a tight affair.
Both players showed off their considerable scoring skills and tactical nous before a sell-out crowd at the at the Qujiang E-sports Centre, leaving only the odd frame in nine to split them in the chase for the £177,000 first prize.
There was never more than a frame between the duo with Trump, chasing back-to-back titles after his success at the Shanghai Masters last month.
He produced breaks of 114 and 62 to lead 3-2, after Wilson had compiled 54 and 58 to level at 2-2 at the mid-session interval.
World No. 3 Wilson moved 4-3 ahead with runs of 135 and 75, only for his fellow Englishman to again restore parity at 4-4 with a 76.
It also provided a £5,000 bonus boost for Mark Williams as Wilson tried and failed to pot the final black without looking, which would have given him a 142 to overtake the Welshman’s 140 high break that so far remains intact.
The final frame of the opening session was a tactical duel as Wilson missed a yellow late in the frame to open the door for Trump, who pocketed the yellow, green and brown, only to see a tough cutback blue to a blind pocket elude him.
Wilson duly mopped up blue and pink to regain the narrow advantage before they play to a finish from 12:30pm BST, with both men chasing 10 frames to become champion.
Trump is 12-8 clear on the career head-to-heads, but Wilson also has the memory of a rousing 10-9 win over the Bristolian in the 2015 Shanghai Masters final.
