Former world champion Stuart Bingham became a ranking event winner once again after he beat close friend Mark Davis to lift the English Open title.

The 2015 Crucible champion came out on top in a thrilling final in Crawley beating practice partner Davis 9-7 on the night to win the Steve Davis Trophy and pocketed a cheque for £75,000.

It’s Bingham’s fifth ranking title of his career and his first since returning to the game after being banned for three months almost a year to the day after he was found guilty of betting on matches.

Victory has lifted Bingham four places in the world rankings and he now sits comfortably in 11th place – putting himself in a great position to secure a place in next year’s Masters – an event he missed last year due to his suspension.

After the match he said: “I was driving up with my manager this morning and told him that if I get my hands on the trophy I’ll probably end up crying.

Stuart Bingham. Picture by Monique Limbos

“There was a lot of emotion and I have proved people wrong. It’s special and no one can take it off me.

“At 5-4 down I was thinking the worst. Fair play to Mark for owning up to the foul because I didn’t see it and the referee didn’t either.

“If he had gone 6-4 he could have stream-rollered me, the way he did against Ronnie (O’Sullivan) in the semi-finals. That got me back in the match. In the last three frames I scored very well.

“I’m over the moon to get my hands on the trophy.”

Bingham’s other ranking titles include his famous World Championship more than three years ago as well as his triumphs in the Australian Open (2011), Shanghai Masters (2014) and the Welsh Open (2017).

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