Wu Yize beats Shaun Murphy in final frame to win World Snooker Championship

As the decisive pot went in at around 10.30pm on Monday, and Wu Yize punched the Crucible air and etched his name into snookering immortality, it was hard not to imagine that the sport had just changed in front of our eyes for ever.

If Zhao Xintong broke through the glass ceiling for Chinese snooker 12 months ago, then the exploits of the newest Crucible king may have just shattered it into a thousand pieces. The boy who came to England as a 16-year-old with his father to pursue his dreams, living in a windowless flat in Sheffield with barely any money to his name, is the champion of the world.

But Wu is not your ordinary champion. He plays with the attacking swagger and risk-taking that will make him a household favourite across the globe, not just back home, for years to come. China has a second world championand Wu’s star will shine brightly wherever he goes.

In the first final to go all the way to the 35th and deciding frame since 2002, Wu appeared to have blown his chance when leading 17-16, and missing a straightforward red to bring a championship-winning break to a halt. Shaun Murphy responded to send us all the way.

But when it mattered most, Wu was the one who held his nerve. He started with an aggressive and risky red, finishing with a break of 85 to become the second-youngest world champion.

Wu Yize lines up a red during his match-winning break in the final frame. Photograph: Richard Sellers/PA

This momentous and nerve-shredding victory is also fascinating for the wider narrative of the young players taking over. Murphy almost represented a one-man guard of a former era here, bidding for a second world title 21 years on from his first, when he, too, was a 22-year-old with the game at his mercy.

How he played his part here, , but Wu became the fourth consecutive first-time winner of snooker’s most famous trophy. They have all been under the age of 32.

Spare a thought for his vanquished opponent, though. One of the sport’s classiest operators, Murphy would have already been a great of the game had he been around in any other era. The problem is he has had to contend with Ronnie O’Sullivan, John Higgins, Mark Selby, Mark Williams and so many more, all at the peak of their powers.