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Chris Wakelin secures victory against Mark Selby in Championship League Group 2 at Morningside Arena
After defeating Mark Selby in the Group 2 championship match on Friday night at the Morningside Arena in Leicester, Chris Wakelin was added to Stuart Bingham’s Champions’ Group. Selby will now concentrate on the Masters, which begins this weekend.
Chris Wakelin earned a spot in the title League’s Winners’ Group by defeating Mark Selby 3-2 in the Group 2 title match.
In Group 2, Selby demonstrated impressive snooker skills, scoring a total of seven hundred. However, Wakelin capitalized on mistakes made by Selby and complemented them with superb table skills to win.
After the first day, Kyren Wilson was in the lead, but Wakelin defeated him 3-1 in the semifinals.
To guarantee his spot in the semifinals, Selby needed to win his last group match, which he won 3-1 against Wakelin.
After that victory, Selby faced Ali Carter in the last four, and he won 3-1 thanks to some incredible snooker.
He scored a run of 63, a break of 120 to start the game, and a knock of 132 to close it out 3-1.
With a break of 59, Selby opened the final frame at the Morningside Arena and appeared to be in fine form.
Wakelin needed snooker, but he located the necessary foul points and knocked in the final four colors to grab the opening. He was in complete control.
After Selby recovered to win the second, he had another great opportunity in the third but missed a tough red, allowing Wakelin to tie the score at 76 with a break.
Although the fourth was a rough match, Selby used some steely safety play to send the match into a decisive frame.
Wakelin clinched victory with a superb break of 110 in the fifth, securing a spot alongside Stuart Bingham in the Winners’ Group.
Reflecting on the match, Wakelin commented, “It was a tough match against Mark, and I’d only lost to him about an hour before in the group stage. I am delighted with how I played in the end. When my chance came in the decider, I committed to three or four big pots, and that’s what got me started.”
Wakelin, acknowledging his improved form, stated, “Compared to where I was 12 months ago, I would not have dreamt of even qualifying, so to get through to the Winners’ Group is a prestigious event. The winner of this gets through to the Champion of Champions. A lot of people will see this as a small event, but silverware is silverware, and winning takes a lot.”
Despite the loss, Selby has another chance in Group 3 at the beginning of February, facing tough competition with players like Kyren Wilson, Gary Wilson, Ali Carter, Neil Robertson, Tom Ford, and Barry Hawkins.
