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Luca Brecel pulled off a miraculous six-cushion escape from a snooker to stun the crowd at the Scottish Open and spark a comeback victory.
The Belgian has endured a testing year following a slump in form after claiming the world title in 2023, but a fortuitous escape from a snooker during a match against Ding Junhui inspired an unlikely victory.
Down 3-1 in the best-of-seven match, but leading his Chinese opponent 64-27 in the frame, Brecel played a powerful shot in a bid to hit the yellow tucked in behind the black.
After missing it with his planned escape, the ball returned to the baulk end and ricocheted twice of the jaws of a cushion before resting dead weight on the yellow, trapping it between the white and the top end of the table.
Brecel would then rally, rattling off the final three frames to discover some form in Edinburgh to defeat Ding for the first time in eight matches, with the six-cushion escape lauded by commentator Phil Studd.
“That might be the most surreal escape from a snooker in the history of the sport,” Studd said.
The win secures Brecel a first ranking event quarter-final of the year, with Guodong Xiao up next after his victory over Stephen Maguire.
“It was good,” Brecel told Eurosport after the match. “The difficult part was getting back to 3-3 and then the decider.
“I always fancied controlling myself. It was a tough win.”
