Mark triumphs after fightback

MARK Selby thought he was dead and buried in the Betfred World Snooker Championship final before staging the spectacular comeback that brought him a third title.

When he trailed John Higgins by 10-4 on Sunday evening, Selby had looked beaten, on the scoreboard and in his cheerless demeanour but a colossal comeback saw him roll to an 18-15 victory barely 24 hours later.

The recovery began when Selby ran through the final three frames of day one, cutting his arrears to 10-7 and sowing the first seeds of doubt i n the mind of Higgins.

“It’s a fantastic feeling,” said Selby. “I was confident coming here because of the season I’ve had.

“However, at 10-4 down, I thought there was no way in the world I was coming back from that. I wanted to try to make it respectable and, at one stage, I was thinking I could lose with a session to spare.

“I was sitting there and thinking, ‘Try to get your act together, try and find something from within, just take one frame at a time’. And to come out 10-7 felt like I was 10-7 in front.

“My game was all over the place, I was missing ball after ball and making it too easy for John. I decided if I was going to lose I’d go down fighting.”

Now Selby can build on his three Crucible triumphs, and four-time champion Higgins is convinced there will be more successes for the 33-year-old Leicester cueman to enjoy.

Asked about Selby’s prospects of further world titles, Higgins said: “I think Mark will add to that, whether it’s one, two, three or four. He’s the toughest player I’ve ever played.

“He looks as if he could be t he challenger to Stephen Hendry’s seven, I really believe that because he’s just granite, he really is. It’s really tough to play against. I take my hat off to him — fantastic.

“Mark is the toughest player I’ve ever played. I was trying to get ahead and keep my foot on him but he’s too good a player not to come back so every credit to him.

“I’m delighted to have got to the final, it’s a pity I couldn’t have gone one step f urther but I’m proud of myself.”

Asked whether Selby was now up there with the all-time greats, Higgins said: “Without a shadow of a doubt.”

From left, Maggie Conacher (Scottish Hockey vicepresident) and Menzieshill players Shaun Craig and Steven Rome after the Dundee side’s cup win.

Mark Selby celebrates.