Steve Mifsud Wins 11th Australian National Snooker Title
Steve Mifsud defeated Shaun Dalitz 6-4 in the final of the 2024 Australian National Snooker Championship to win the title for a record-extending 11th time.
Mifsud, who competed on the professional tour in numerous spells between 1991 and 2021, defeated Dalitz in the final to win the prestigious crown for a third year in a row and bring his total tally to 11 – having first lifted the national title in 2001 with a victory over future world champion Neil Robertson.
The event was organised by the Australian Billiards and Snooker Council (ABSC) and the Victorian Billiards and Snooker Association (VBSA) and took place at the RACV Club in Melbourne on 24-26 August.
The eventual champion dropped just a single frame in his first three matches, comfortably overcoming Theo Tsaikos, Nathan White and John Walmsley to set up a rematch of last year’s final in the last eight against Adrian Ridley.
Mifsud took the opener with a break of 74, but Ridley quickly rallied to level the scoreline. The 52-year-old then stepped up a gear, however, as he breaks of 68 and 95 helped him to a 4-1 victory and a place in the semi-finals.
A hard-fought 5-3 win in the last four against Cale Barrett saw Mifsud set up a final meeting with Dalitz, who had impressively overcome former professional and back-to-back Q Tour Asia-Pacific event winner Vinnie Calabrese to reach the title match.
Photo: VBSA
Dalitz, competing in his first national championship final, made a strong start as he moved into a 2-0 lead in the best-of-11 frame contest and once again moved ahead at 3-2 with a superb contribution of 95.
Mifsud took the next two frames to move ahead for the first time at 4-3, before Dalitz once again hit back to restore parity by winning frame eight.
From there, Mifsud’s experience showed as he took two tight frames to get over the line 6-4 and secure a record extending 11th Australian national title.
