Mark Selby shows true colours after Judd Trump win and explains retirement decision | Other | Sport
Mark Selby spoke honestly after beating Judd Trump to clinch victory at the UK Championship and win his first Triple Crown event since 2021. The four-time Crucible winner held off a spirited fightback from his rival to secure a 10-8 victory in Sunday’s final. He rattled off the first five frames to gain a commanding lead but Trump mounted a resurgence in the evening session.
The man from Bristol won three of the first four frames after play resumed to spark hope of a monumental comeback. Selby, however, performed well under pressure to clinch the honours and land the £250,000 jackpot. After sealing victory with a composed break of 69 in the final frame, the 42-year-old admitted that he didn’t know what to make of his performance.
He said: “To win another Triple Crown event… as Judd said, they’re not easy to win. As you can tell, it took me nine years to get back here.
“Judd just put me under pressure. Even from 5-0 down, he pinches a frame at the interval and then goes 5-3. Then it’s a totally different game. At night I was a bit all over the place towards the end.
“I don’t know how I made the make the break in the last frame. I had to avoid my backside going on the floor here somewhere. I don’t know how I managed to make it.
“Just great to win again here in York. I love the city, I love the venue and the crowd has been fantastic all week. It’s what I set my target as every year, to try and win one of these three tournaments [Triple Crown].
“It’s not easy to do but that’s my goal and if I pick up some other tournaments along the way, then fantastic. I think I speak for all the top boys, the other tournaments are great but you are judged by these Triple Crown events.”
Selby’s impressive victory in York came 18 months after he flirted with retirement, but he is no longer thinking about hanging up his cue for good.
“I’ve always said in many, many interviews over the years the time I stop enjoying it is the time I’ll stop playing,” he added. “For a while I wasn’t enjoying it you know. I was performing poorly and not really enjoying the challenge.
“I thought to myself: ‘Maybe I should start looking at something else’. But I’ve got no qualifications from school at all so I’ve got nothing to fall back on. I had a regroup and thought it’s not a bad way to make a living, so I’ll carry on.”
Looking ahead to the Masters, which takes place next month, Selby underlined his title credentials while also showing his true colours with a classy message to Trump.
“Winning breeds confidence,’ he said. “Not only that, the last two tournaments I’ve won, I’ve played Judd who is an unbelievable player.
“To have achieved what he’s achieved at such a young age… he’s still only 36 and he’s won just as much as I’ve won in the game.
“It’s incredible. I love playing him. I see it as a challenge because I put him up there with Ronnie [O’Sullivan] on a pedestal. He’s great to watch and he’s fantastic for our game.”
