Summary

  • China's Yan Bingtao beats John Higgins 10-8 to win Masters

  • Yan, 20, wins his first Triple Crown title on his Masters debut

  • Youngest Masters champion since Ronnie O'Sullivan won aged 19 in 1995

  • A star is born, says BBC TV commentator John Virgo

  • World number 11 Yan fought back from 5-3 & 7-5 down

  • Tournament took place behind closed doors at Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes

Live Reporting

Steve Sutcliffe

  1. Yan Bingtao's route to the final

    Higgins v Yan

    Yan BingtaoWorld Snooker

    Yan Bingtao has displayed incredible resolve by winning all three of his matches at this year's Masters in final-frame deciders.

    First there was a shock victory over world number two Neil Robertson in the first round and he then edged past Stephen Maguire in the quarter-finals.

    The world number 11 fell behind once more against reigning champ Stuart Bingham but seemingly improves when trailing and under pressure, doing significant damage by leaving his opponent without a pot for over an hour.

  2. John Higgins' road to the final

    John HigginsWorld Snooker

    Now 45, you would be able to slap a VM tag (Veteran Male) in front of John Higgins' name if this was a local running event.

    Scotland's two-time Masters winner hasn’t appeared in the final since he won the title in 2006, when he beat Ronnie O’Sullivan 10-9 in an absolute epic at the Wembley Conference Centre.

    But he has rolled back the years this time around. A 6-5 victory over Mark Allen was followed by a vintage performance in a 6-3 win over O'Sullivan before he held off David Gilbert 6-4 on Saturday evening.

  3. Watch: Live coverage of the Masters final

    BBC Two

    Just a quick reminder that you will be able to watch the final of the Masters live on BBC Two and by clicking play at the top of this page.

  4. Steve Davis
    Six-time world champion on BBC Two

    Try and pick a winner from those two, experience against youth and every chance Yan can beat John, he is going to have to play well to beat him. It is nicely set up.

    He has a relatively poor record at the Masters and he can put it right if he wins. A lot of people thought John was past his best and maybe thought he was never going to win a major again so he is proving them wrong."

  5. This will be the first Masters final without spectators in attendance with the tournament being played behind closed doors at the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes.

    But can't imagine that Yan Bingtao will be too bothered about that. Should he win, the 20-year-old will become the youngest player to lift the trophy since Ronnie O'Sullivan, who won aged 19 in 1995

  6. As I alluded to in the opening post there is a big age gap between these two players.

    So much so that Yan Bingtao wasn't even born when John Higgins won the first of his two Masters titles in 1999.

  7. Good afternoon

    Higgins v Yan

    Paul Hunter TrophyGetty Images

    Master v apprentice. Old stager v fledgling. Veteran v debutant.

    Good afternoon and welcome to our coverage of the final of the Masters which sees John Higgins take on Yan Bingtao for the Paul Hunter Trophy and a top prize of £250,000.

    Will the exuberance of youth win out? Or will experience prove decisive?

    I can't wait to find out.