Mark Allen wins fifth deciding frame of week to beat Zhou Yuelong in English Open 2025 final to secure Steve Davis Trophy
Updated 22/09/2025 at 08:36 GMT+1
Mark Allen got his hands on the English Open for the first time in his career with victory over Zhou Yuelong in the final at Brentwood Centre in Essex on Sunday. Allen began working with coach Chris Henry earlier this year and the move has started to pay dividends with a title. Watch and stream top snooker action, including the Xi'an Grand Prix, live and on demand on TNT Sports and discovery+.
‘You cannot get better than that’ - Allen opens final with total clearance
Video credit: TNT Sports
Mark Allen snapped an 18-month spell without a ranking title when fending off a Zhou Yuelong fightback to win the final of the English Open.
Prior to taking the title in Brentwood, in a match which started on Sunday and finished in the early hours of Monday, Allen had not hoisted a ranking trophy since lifting the Players Championship in February 2024.
Allen linked up with coach Chris Henry earlier this year, and spoke positively about what they had been working on.
Henry said in the TNT Sports studio that their work was starting to bear fruit, and Allen confirmed that as he secured his 12th ranking title - just.
Allen looked well set to win with something to spare, but Zhou produced a determined fightback in the evening and forced the former world No. 1 to dig deep and win a deciding frame for the fifth time this week.
Allen found himself on the back foot on repeated occasions on his journey to the final, needing to win deciding frames to beat Stuart Bingham, Ding Junhui, Elliot Slessor and Jak Jones, but he opened his clash with Zhou in stunning fashion.
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‘You cannot get better than that’ - Allen opens final with total clearance
Video credit: TNT Sports
The Northern Irishman took the opening frame when beating Zhou in the final of the Northern Ireland Open in 2022, and he repeated the dose at Brentwood Centre on Sunday with a total clearance of 132.
Zhou got his first taste of table time in the second and was on for a maximum at one stage, but missed a routine black when on a break of 65. A counter from Allen failed to materialise as Zhou levelled the contest.
There were chances for Zhou in frames three and four, but a missed red in the third allowed Allen to take it courtesy of a break of 72.
A slack positional shot in the fourth cost Zhou, as Allen took the frame via an outrageous fluke to go into the first interval with a 3-1 lead.
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‘The exclamation mark on the frame’ - Allen flukes red to set seal on frame
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Allen carried on the momentum in the fifth, as a break of 59 saw him extend his lead.
There was a moment of controversy in the sixth, albeit the issue was swiftly resolved. Referee Kevin Dabrowski called Zhou for a foul but corrected his mistake after seeing a replay.
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Referee calls foul on Zhou, changes mind after seeing replay
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Allen did enough to take the sixth, but Zhou stopped the rot with an impressive run of 81 in the seventh.
The eighth boiled down to a battle on the final two reds, albeit with Allen in command after a break of 54.
Zhou showed some frustration as the white drifted off when he attempted a roll-up shot. It did not prove fatal, but another error allowed Allen to close out the frame and take a 6-2 lead into the evening.
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‘The old curveball’ - Zhou frustrated as white drifts off and misses red
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Play resumed in the evening with an attritional frame which took 45 minutes to decide.
Zhou worked himself a lead on the back of some good safety, but dropped awkwardly on a red and after contemplating the pot for a couple of minutes, he went for it but failed to convert.
Allen worked his way back into the frame and it turned into a battle on the colours.
Allen had the upper hand when earning 12 points in fouls from a snooker, but another safety did not go to plan and Zhou potted the yellow to break the stalemate and took the colours to the blue to bag the ninth.
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Allen bounced back and restored a four-frame cushion on the back of a gritty break of 47 in the 10th.
He struggled to get prime position, but pulled out a couple of excellent pots and he turned the advantage into the frame as Zhou was unable to fashion a telling response.
Nerves appeared to play a part in the 11th, as Allen and Zhou made a couple of questionable shot choices, with both missing pots that never looked on.
After Zhou passed up a second chance, the frame was in Allen’s grasp with the balls well set, but he dropped poorly on a red and missed it to the right corner when attempting to pinch a bit of the pocket to hold for the black.
Zhou did not pass up the third chance and the first 50 break of the evening saw him get back to within three to guarantee there would be an evening interval.
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‘Pretty clinical’ - Zhou deals with an insect in ruthless fashion
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After looking so strong in the afternoon session, Allen’s form dipped in the evening and he offered up chances to Zhou.
Zhou made breaks of 30 and 14 with the cue ball covering a lot of the table, and with Allen failing to make inroads, the Chinese player took the 12th to go into the final interval within two frames.
The interval arguably came at a good time for Allen, and he appeared to be in a more positive mindset in frame 13.
He made an excellent break of 60, but a tough red to the left middle did not drop and he was left a helpless spectator as Zhou countered with a stunning run of 72 to cut the gap to one.
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‘This is anyone’s now’ - Zhou makes nerveless clearance to steal frame
Video credit: TNT Sports
Having found himself four behind on three occasions, Zhou took the 14th to draw level.
A break of 60 secured the frame, but he was handed a helping hand by his opponent as Allen - in the words of Neal Foulds on commentary for TNT Sports - played "a dire shot."
Allen was in the cluster of reds but referee Dabrowski called touching ball, meaning he had the freedom to send the cue ball anywhere on the table.
After taking an age over the shot, he made a complete mess of running for baulk as the white hit the jaws of the right middle and set Zhou up for a frame-winning contribution of 60.
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‘A dire shot’ - Allen makes huge blunder in safety attempt
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Allen forced an error after dominating a safety battle at the start of the 15th, but his positional play after potting a black was poor.
His effort at a tough red along the bottom rail failed to drop and Zhou picked off a break of 53 to edge ahead for the first time in the match.
The drama continued in the 16th as Allen crafted a break of 71 to seemingly stop the bleeding, but he went in-off with snookers required to give Zhou a lifeline.
Zhou produced a string of brilliant shots to leave Allen in trouble, but he got out of a snooker after conceding three fouls and was fortunate to lay a snooker of his own.
The escape was made by Zhou, but he saw the white drop into the green pocket and Allen potted the balls required to take the match the distance.
A cagey decider took 11 minutes for a ball to be potted, as the clock ticked beyond midnight.
The first chance went Allen’s way and he set up a winning opportunity with a break of 61, but missed a blue to give Zhou a window to counter.
It was a tough opener along the bottom rail, but he played it without conviction and left it in the jaws of the pocket.
Allen picked it off and a black to follow - to huge applause from the crowd - as the match time ticked past seven hours.
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Watch and stream top snooker action, including the Xi'an Grand Prix, live and on demand on TNT Sports and discovery+
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