Mark Allen retains Northern Ireland Open title

Mark Allen has successfully defended his Northern Ireland Open title, defeating Zhou Yuelong in an incredible comeback victory that saw the home player win eight frames in a row.

Last year, Allen triumphed over John Higgins 9-8, winning the final three frames to secure the match. A battle that looked similarly close to begin with this time round saw all the momentum shift to Allen, and the Antrim player was unstoppable as he rushed to victory.

He also won cheque of £80,000 and a place in the Champion of Champions next week.

When Allen got going, Zhou barely had a chance to respond. And it was all the more surprising, given that the Chinese player initially looked the most promising. Allen won the first frame, but Zhou responded with breaks of 33 and 56 to level the match. He followed that with an incredible 135 to take the lead, and after a safety battle in frame four, it was 3-1. There was a touch of controversy – the referee issued a warning to Zhou as he spent more than two minutes figuring out how to escape an Allen snooker, but it did little to kill the Chinese player’s momentum.

The fifth frame was a brutal one, lasting almost 50 minutes and seeing the players scrap to secure any points – Zhou eventually won, to go 4-1 in front. And it feels incredible to write, but this was his last frame of the match. Allen capitalised on a miss by Zhou to produce 68 and win frame six, and aggressive shot choices in the final two frames of the session helped Allen to level at 4-4.

You know how proud a Northern Irishman I am and how much I want to do well here for the fans

– Mark Allen

In the evening, the first chance was Zhou’s, but a missed red and poor safety helped Allen move back into the lead for the first time since frame one. The Antrim player made an 85 to make it 6-4, and a combination of a 50 break and a fluke on the frame-ball red saw Allen win his sixth frame in a row. The tide was turning against Zhou – he couldn’t take advantage of his table time, and strong play and another fluke made it 8-4. Allen needed one frame, and he wrapped up with a century of 109 to win that and secure his title.

After the match, Allen said: “I wasn’t playing good, but I was trying to remain as positive as I could. I was constantly thinking of positive thoughts. Good memories from my old matches. I felt like all those good thoughts got me out of that session 4-4.

“At 4-4, it felt like I was 6-2 up. I felt like that’s where I won the match.

“He was playing immaculate safely and wasn’t missing when in the balls. Maybe he felt that the chance was there for him at 4-1 but he missed one or two and let me back in and I never really looked back after that.

“You know how proud a Northern Irishman I am and how much I want to do well here for the fans. To win two years in a row is something. I just didn’t think this day was ever going to happen.”