Ding Junhui takes Scottish crown

Ding Junhui won his first title of the season by beating Anthony McGill 4-2 in the final of the Scottish Open in Ravenscraig, part of the Betfair European Tour.

McGill, from nearby Glasgow, enjoyed a miraculous run to the final but came up short against Ding, who won for the first time since the Welsh Open triumph last season.

China's top player Ding, aged 25, has struggled recently but now looks poised for a shot at major titles next year, the first of which is the Betfair Masters in January.

Breaks of 71 and 77 helped put former UK and Masters champion Ding up 2-1 in the final, then rising star McGill, a 21-year-old playing in his first professional final, made a 66 to level at 2-2. 

The Scot made a 49 in the next, but Ding hit back to take it with a 40 clearance. When McGill missed a tricky yellow in frame six, it proved his last shot as Ding compiled a run of 71 to seal the win..

"I played well this week, I made a lot of big breaks and concentrated in every game," Ding said. "I was a bit lucky tonight, the fifth frame was a big one. I've built a lot of confidence here and if I can keep my form going I can win more titles this season."

Earlier, McGill was 3-0 down in his quarterfinal against Thanawat Tirapongpaiboon and came back to win 4-3, then he was 3-1 down to Andrew Higginson in the semis and eventually won a respotted black in the deciding frame.

McGill said: "I could have been out earlier - to get to the final is a personal best. But I missed too many easy pots in the end. It was my first time in a big arena and I'll deal with it better next time."

The Betfair European Tour is part of the Players Tour Championship series. The next event is the Munich Open in Germany from Jan 4-6.