Mink Goes Back to Back in Bruges!
Thailand’s Mink Nutcharut has defeated Ng On Yee of Hong Kong China 4-2 to win the Belgian Women’s Open title for the second time in her career at The Trickshot in Bruges.
Victory in Belgium for the current world number one from Saraburi marks the first time in her career that she has successfully defended a ranking event title on the World Women’s Snooker Tour and is her second title of the season following her capture of the US Women’s Open last August. Mink has now won seven titles in total in just over four years since her triumph at the 2019 Australian Open.
Having been seeded through to the last 16 stage as reigning champion, the 24-year-old began her campaign with victory against England’s Connie Stephens – who equalled her best-ever ranking result on Saturday evening – with a top break of 65 to progress to the final day.
From there she also scored a 3-0 success against the impressive Bayarsaikhan Narantuya of Mongolia in a deceptively close quarter-final to set up a mouthwatering tie with 12-time world champion and 2019 Belgian Open champion Reanne Evans. A high-quality match which swung one way and then the other, ultimately it would require a seventh and deciding-frame which was won by Mink on the colours after Evans could not get the snookers she required.
Awaiting her in the final was 2020 Bruges winner Ng On Yee, after the three-time world champion had defeated Anja Vandenbussche, Tessa Davidson and last year’s runner-up Wendy Jans to reach the title match for the third time since 2019. Most notably, her quarter-final with tenth ranked Davidson had seen Ng fall 1-2 behind, before a classy break of 74 in the fourth frame turned the contest in her favour and she went on to claim a more comfortable decider.
A repeat of the trophy match at the season-opening US Open, the finale itself was to prove a high-quality affair as Ng opened with a break of 88, only for Nutcharut to counter with 87 of her own to level at 1-1.
Ng reclaimed the lead following the third frame with a steely clearance of 33, but from there it was Thailand’s Mink who seized the initiative with runs of 55, 34 and 46 to claim the following three frames and secure her latest Tour victory.
The title ensures that Mink will consolidate her position at the head of the world rankings with four events still to be played this season.
Away from the final, the highest break of the week was made by Wendy Jans, the Belgian star compiling a superb 108 on her first visit of the tournament – her third century on the WWS Tour and first in four years, also at the Belgian Open.
Side-Tournaments
There was also a successful title defence in the Seniors tournament as England’s Tessa Davidson defeated compatriot Mary Talbot 3-0 in a repeat of last season’s final.
Top ranked Davidson would not drop a frame in the competition as she reached the final with victories against Belgian duo Caty Dehaene and Vanessa Vermeulen, before ending a run of two defeats against reignining Seniors world champion Talbot in the climactic match.
The 6-Red Challenge Cup tournament for players who did not reach the quarter-finals was won by Ho Yee Ki of Hong Kong China, who downed Emilie Demeester, Connie Stephens, Kate Le Gallez and finally Caty Dehaene in the final, also without the loss of a frame.
Most notably, Ki completed a superb break of 70 during her last 16 victory, only five points short of a 6-Red maximum and the highest on Tour at a 6-Red event since Ng On Yee crafted a 71 break at the 2019 6-Red World Women’s Championship.
World Women’s Snooker would like to thank Olivier Vandenbohede and his team at our host venue The Trickshot for their support and hospitality, which included the fitting of 11 new tournament cloths for the event.
The WWS Tour continues later this month with the Albanian Women’s Open which runs from 29 January – 2 February 2024.
