Robertson edges O'Sullivan to win Saudi Snooker Masters title

JEDDAH, Aug. 17 (Xinhua) -- Australia's Neil Robertson edged seven-time world champion Ronnie O'Sullivan 10-9 in a dramatic final on Saturday night to claim the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters title in Jeddah.

Robertson took control early, building a 6-2 lead after the first session. He extended the advantage to 7-2 in the second session and appeared firmly in command.

O'Sullivan, who had made two 147 maximum breaks the previous day, rallied with five straight frames featuring breaks of more than 50 to level the match at 7-7.

Robertson responded in the 15th frame with a break of 75 to regain the lead, but O'Sullivan captured the next two frames to move 9-8 ahead and reach match point.

Refusing to concede, Robertson fired a century break to force a decider. In the final frame, he capitalized on an O'Sullivan error to seal the victory.

"I have had to answer a lot of questions like whether I can still beat someone like Ronnie in a final of this magnitude. To beat him here with so much on the line, it's definitely my best win," Robertson said after the match.

The victory marked Robertson's 26th career ranking title, tying Mark Williams for sixth on the all-time list. Along with the 500,000 pounds (about 677,000 U.S. dollars) winner's prize, the Australian also rose to world No. 3 in the rankings. ■