2024 British Open Snooker: Mark Selby wins The Clive Everton Trophy

Success for Selby in Cheltenham represents his first ranking title triumph in over a year-and-a-half, and comes just months after considering retirement from the sport following a first round exit at the World Championship.

Two of snooker’s all-time greats with four world titles apiece, both finalists produced an exceptional standard of play during the first session of the title match at the Centaur.

A 63 from Selby helped him deposit the first frame before Higgins went 2-1 up along with breaks of 80 and 60.

Selby - last year’s runner-up in this event - then registered runs of 85, 137 and 88 in a three-frame burst that put daylight between the pair as he went 4-2 up.

Higgins responded with a 105 to close the gap to one, but Selby compiled his second total clearance of the tie - a 135 - to finish the session 5-3 up.

On resumption a few hours later, the action wasn’t quite as rip-roaring to begin with, but was still compelling. Higgins claimed a scrappy ninth frame, but despite establishing a points lead in the next two, it was Selby who took them both (frame 11 - 85 break). However, the Scot won frame 12 to go into the last mid-session interval of the contest still in touch at 7-5 behind.

After the break, though, Englishman Selby really kicked on towards the trophy. He went three clear again with frame 13 and then finished in style with contributions of 91 and 93 to end his ranking event title drought on the World Snooker Tour.

41-year-old Selby collects the £100,000 top prize for his efforts this week, helping ease his situation on the provisional end-of-season ranking list where he was outside of the world’s top 16 coming into this week’s competition. En route to his latest glory, he won his first four matches in Cheltenham via a deciding frame - the first two were on the final black.

His maiden title on the ITV network, he remains eighth on the all-time list of the players with the most ranking event triumphs, but moves one behind Neil Robertson - last week’s English Open champion - who is in seventh on 24 titles.

Whilst four-time British Open champion Higgins will be disappointed losing his fifth consecutive ranking event final, this was the first time he had been in a showpiece match like this for nearly 30 months.

Earlier this week, the 49-year-old dropped outside of the world’s top 16 bracket for the first time in over 29 years, but his run to the final in Gloucestershire means he will be back in it when the rankings are revised on Monday.

For full details on the 2024 British Open including the draw, results, prize money, schedule and how to watch, please visit our tournament information centre here.