Wuhan Open 2023: Judd Trump overcomes Ali Carter to win Wuhan Open final and back-to-back ranking events

Judd Trump claimed back-to-back ranking titles after edging to a hard-fought 10-7 victory over Ali Carter to win the Wuhan Open.

Trump started the match in fine fettle with a break of 72, following on from an initial run of 46 to set his stall out.

The ebb and flow of the contest was clear from the start, with Carter responding brilliantly with a scintillating break of 103 in frame two.

Trump looked to be motoring his way towards a dominant win after racing into a 4-1 lead, a run kickstarted after recovering from 52-1 down in the third frame to re-establish his advantage.

The Carter comeback was on from that point onwards, after potting up to the green to reduce the deficit at 4-2.

He then followed that up with an excellent plant to land a red into the left centre, going onto claim a clearance of 48 and reducing Trump’s lead to 4-3.

Carter was playing with momentum behind him, expertly escaping a snooker and capitalising on a free ball to pot up to the pink and level the scores at 4-4.

Another cagey frame would follow, but resulted in Carter managing to take the lead at 5-4 from 4-1 down with a fluke shot of the ages to pot a long red, before clearing to the pink.

It was an incredible turnaround and ensured the world No. 11 would go into the evening session on a high.

This unleashed Trump back into action though, and we were level once again thanks to his first century of the match and the 100th of the tournament.

It was a blistering assault on the table from Trump, who seized the initiative and did not look back, after Carter missed an awkward-looking red.

Trump would retake the lead with a break of 56, while there was a degree of luck involved when the world No. 4 moved further in front.

He covered the red inside a corner pocket with the cue ball. After Carter failed in his attempt to pot this ball, Trump extended his advantage at 7-5.

Carter would rein him back in though, after brilliantly potting a long red and subsequently working his way towards a break of 56 to reduce the arrears to 7-6.

The championship was coming into sight for Trump when Carter left a red over a middle pocket, and he motored on from there to clear up to the pink after an extensive safety battle at 8-6.

Carter’s frustrations and audible gasps from the crowd surfaced, as he potted the cue ball and the blue, but it was perhaps not as bad as first seemed, with another safety exchange beginning to brew.

After leaving a black over a middle pocket, Trump entered the fray with a red-pink combination before potting that black, and started to see the table open up nicely.

There was some brilliant safety play going on in a cagey 15th frame, until Trump left a red hanging over a pocket using the rest and suddenly the table opened up for Carter.

After mopping up the reds, he was thwarted on the green to a middle pocket with only the colours left, giving Trump an unexpected return to the table.

Trump did not pass on the opportunity, clearing up to the pink to leave him one frame away from the title at 9-6.

Trump left a red over the jaws of a bottom pocket, allowing Carter to clear all the way up to the pink, but agonisingly missed this, and left the world No. 4 needing that and the black to win the title.

He failed, and gave Carter a dramatic reprieve to pot the pink at the second opportunity and close the scores to 9-7.

Trump ended the match in style though, with the table opening up wonderfully. He cleared up to the black with his 32nd century of the season with a break of 105 to become the tournament’s inaugural champion.