From shyness, from youth, from almost anonymity but also from aggressiveness in his long-distance game, from the audacity of not knowing what it is to defend, or not wanting to defend, and from the personality of managing to pocket each ball through the middle of the pocket as if it had an allergy to peak-peak. In this way, and at only 22 years old, Wu Yize won 18-17 Shaun Murphy in the grand final of the snooker world championship.
If last year was Zhao Xintong The one who put China on the map of the snooker world championship by giving it its first world championship, 365 days later his compatriot Wu Yize has allowed the Asian country to continue ruling the world of colored ball billiards.
A long final, more than 10 hours of final, a final of streaks (4-4 after the first session and 10-7 in favor of the Chinese after the second), a final in which the ghost of the four lost by Shaun Murphy hovered around the Crucible every time the Englishman entered the table. A final of contrasts, on the one hand the experience and seniority of Murphy, on the other the courage and confidence in her long game of Wu Yize who, despite being a debutant in the final, relied on her every time she needed to equalize the score or try to take advantage.
Little by little, Wu raised the level of his game with very high breaks, being very effective in attack and very solid tactically, playing in certain phases of the final in a kamikaze way, being faithful to his style, which led him to win the International Championship against John Higgins in what was his first title as a professional, and the one that has led him to achieve the feat of proclaiming himself world snooker champion against all odds.
Wu Yize was born 22 years ago, but May 4, 2026 was when a global snooker star was born, from China to the world a year later, Wu Yize world snooker champion.
