Robertson Rules In Riga
Neil Robertson won the first ranking title of the 2018/19 season by beating Jack Lisowski 5-2 in the final of the Kaspersky Riga Masters.
- View the updated seeding list at the first revision of the season following the Riga Masters
- View the new provisional seedings list
- View the updated provisional end of season ranking list
Australia’s 36-year-old Robertson collected the trophy and a cheque for £50,000 after winning six matches in the Latvian capital.
World number ten Robertson brings his career tally of ranking titles to 14, joining Mark Selby in joint-sixth place on the all-time list.
Last month Robertson revealed he was full of optimism for the new season, having changed cue for the first time in 20 years, and he couldn’t have made a better start to the campaign. He becomes the first player to win the title in Riga twice, having lifted the trophy in 2016.
Lisowski made it to the final of a ranking event for the first time in his career, notably beating Graeme Dott 4-0 in the quarter-finals and Stephen Maguire 5-1 in the semis earlier in the day. But the 27-year-old from Gloucestershire was no match for Robertson in the final.
Former World Champion Robertson won the first two scrappy frames, then made a superb break of 117 to go 3-0 ahead. Lisowski pulled one back and had chances in frame five, but Robertson cleared from the last red for 4-1.
The sixth went to Lisowski and again he had chances in frame seven, but Robertson got the better of a safety echange on the last red and went on to seal victory.
Earlier in the semis, Robertson scored a 5-0 win over Stuart Carrington, who reached the last four of a ranking event for the first time.
The next tournament is the Yushan World Open in China, running from August 6-12.
