Mark Selby emerged victorious in a thrilling China Championship final on Sunday as he beat John Higgins 10-9. It was a truly high-quality final at the Guangzhou Tianhe Sports Centre as both players exchanged frames with neither man able to get any kind of significant advantage.

World number four Higgins held a narrow 5-4 lead heading into the evening session, although it was Selby that had produced the better snooker when he got amongst the balls as he recorded the highest break of the match in the eighth frame when he produced a knock of 118.

The two players continued to exchange frames during the final session, although Higgins looked like he was going to claim the win when he edged a very tight 17th frame to move 9-8 in front.

However, Selby is not number one in the world for nothing and he showed his quality in the final two frames, first edging another tight one, before wrapping up the decider in more convincing fashion, although neither player managed a half-century break in the final four frames.

The victory sealed Selby’s first ranking event title since his victory at the China Open in April and it will give him renewed confidence heading into next week’s European Masters. The Jester from Leicester will face Sam Craigie in his opening match at that tournament on Tuesday and he is priced at 1.20 to book his place in the second round, while Craigie is available at 4.33.