Zhou beats Selby to reach English Open final

Zhou Yuelong, a Chinese player, defeated Mark Selby 6-3 to reach the English Open final.

Zhou held on to hold onto the lead of his third career, going 3-0, despite showing signs of recovery from Selby, whose frame-four frame-stealing 71 clearance kept the Englishman at bay.

The 27-year-old, who had never made a ranking event quarter-final this year, is back in form.

His first ranking event final since 2022, when he lost to Allen in the Northern Ireland Open final, is in his first ranking competition.

You need to be very strong mentally in this sport. You require positive thoughts when you are in the chair after missing a ball. This season will be a very different experience for me,” Zhou said.

“I will be very proud of myself if I win the final,” I promised. Going from zero to one is challenging at first. Although it’s challenging, I’ll try my hardest and hope to succeed.

After defeating Jak Jones in a final-frame decider in a top-scoring last-four tie, Northern Ireland’s Allen edged out him in the final on Sunday.

Within the first five frames, both men broke records, before Wales’ Jones, who had already recorded four more half-centuries, took the lead to 5-3.