Ali Carter wins German Masters

Ali Carter has won the 2023 German Masters, ending a seven-year title drought, with a dominant 10-3 victory over Tom Ford. Carter’s last title came in 2016 with a win in the Yushan World Open, but he was on fire in Germany, as he made eight half-centuries and one century in a match he almost single-handedly controlled. Ford, in his first ranking final after stunning pre-tournament favourite Jack Lisowski in the semis, could do little after an early lead, as Carter steamrolled him.

Ford got out of the blocks first, with a superb century break of 121, after a safety error by his opponent. Carter had the first chance in the second, and he’d assembled a 64-point lead when he missed a red while opening the pack. He left things open for Ford, who cleared the table, making 66 and completing a brilliant steal. Ford had built a 2-0 lead, but that was the last time he’d be putting a frame on the board for a while. Ford made just nine in the third frame, but he gave Carter the initiative, and a 69 break brought him into the match. It got to snookers required on the colours in the fourth – Carter trapped Ford, and after he caught the blue on an escape, things were level.

Soon, Carter took the lead, with breaks of 67 and 57 securing frame five. It was Ford’s turn to assemble a big lead (of 53 points) in the sixth frame, and Carter’s turn for a steal – after an impasse involving reds stuck to the right-hand cushion, Carter found a pot and won the frame. He was hitting his stride, opening the reds in the seventh early and assembling a clinical 73 to further extend his lead. An unanswered 120 by Carter resulting in his sixth successive frame and Ford needed to do something. He made 50 before breaking down, and although Carter fought on eventually needing an unlikely snooker, it was soon over and the two men entered the interval 6-3.

I am delighted to be in the winners’ circle again

Ford needed a strong start to the evening, but it never materialised. He had multiple chances in frame 10, but he could not capitalise on them – the final one gave from a good red that gave him a tough cut on the black. Once he missed it, he could do nothing but watch as his opponent won the frame. Ford went for a pot off Carter’s break in the 11th frame, saw it fly out of one pocket and land over another – from there, Carter made 75 to move two from victory. Ford rallied in the 12th frame, building a 51-23 lead, but then he missed a red and let his opponent back in to clear up, cutting a tight black in the middle. From then on, the win was almost guaranteed – Carter twice potted two reds in one shot in the final frame, on the way to a 63 break that secured his victory.

After the match, Carter said: “When you play the game as long as I have you think it won’t happen again but you have to keep believing. I am really proud of the way I played today. I put Tom under a lot of pressure. I just tried to keep the pressure on as much as I could. I have a great team behind me and I just want to say thank you. I am delighted to be in the winners’ circle again.”

Ford said: “I felt good in the first couple of frames, but Ali just played the game and kept it tight. I kept on making silly mistakes and he just punished me from there. It’s frustrating because I played really well in the semi-final. I’m sorry to everyone here that you’ve only seen four frames this evening and I couldn’t play a little bit better.”

As a result of the win, Carter picks up his second trophy in this event (he won in 2013) and the £80,000 top prize. He also returns to the top 16, and thus he’s in position for an automatic place at the World Championship. Carter now leads the BetVictor Series standings, with only the Welsh Open left to take place – whoever accumulates the most prize money over these events will land a £150,000 bonus.