1. Jak Jones vs Kyren Wilson LIVE: World Snooker Championship final score and updates

Mark Williams capped an extraordinary career revival by winning his third world title 15 years after his first.

The 43-year-old Welshman arrived at the Crucible without a ranking title win in six years, and seemed as surprised as anyone by his resurgence.

In a high-quality final, John Higgins hauled back a 15-10 deficit to level at 15-15, before Williams found an extra gear to seal his improbable win.

1994: Stephen Hendry 18-17 Jimmy White

Jimmy White, who had lost in five previous finals, fought back from behind and finally had the title at his mercy. But with the magnitude of the occasion starting to dawn on him, White missed a black off its spot, and had to watch in agony as Stephen Hendry responded with a break of 58 to win his fourth world crown.

A shattered White would never find his way to a Crucible final again.

1985: Dennis Taylor 18-17 Steve Davis

The final that transcended snooker, as a television audience of 18.5 million stayed up after midnight to watch a thrilling black ball decider.

Steve Davis had the first chance but missed a thin cut, prompting commentator Ted Lowe to gasp: “No!”.

Dennis Taylor, who had lost the first eight frames of the match, stepped up to finish the job, blowing a kiss towards the trophy and waggling his finger at those who had doubted him.

1982: Alex Higgins 18 -15 Ray Reardon

After a classic tournament that saw defending champion Steve Davis bundled out 10-1 by Tony Knowles in round one, and one of the greatest all-time clearances by Alex Higgins to keep alive his semi-final against Jimmy White, the volatile Belfast star reeled off three frames in succession to sink Ray Reardon before tearfully beckoning his wife and baby daughter Lauren onto centre stage.

“I turned professional because I wanted to win things,” Kyren Wilson told BBC Sport in 2018. “I am not just going be happy to reach the semi-finals or the finals of big events.

“I want my two boys to grow up and be able to say ‘my dad was more than a decent snooker player’. And to be well thought of, you need to be doing better than just reaching the latter stages of tournaments.”

Will Wilson achieve his dream of winning the world title this evening?

Born in Kettering, the 32-year-old first turned professional in 2010 and soon established himself as one of snooker’s brightest young stars, recovering from a loss of form and regaining his World Tour card to return to the top tier of the sport in 2013.

Wilson immediately made an impact, forging a reputation as a player who could beat anyone on his day as he built the consistency required to challenge at the highest level. By 2015, it had arrived — at the Shanghai Masters, Wilson came all the way through qualifying to stun Judd Trump in the final and secure his first ranking title.

“It seems like a common excuse that these players use against me,” said Jak Jones when asked if his style of play is too slow. “They are supposed to be the best players in the world but they are moaning about being knocked out of their rhythm.

“I don’t think 28 seconds a shot is slow for my first semi-final. Other players regularly go down to their late 20s but they always have to say the same thing after they lose against me.

“They just can’t accept it. It’s pathetic really, isn’t it. The worst thing I’ve noticed when I’m playing them is that I feel like they want to play that game. I couldn’t believe how Judd was playing against me – he completely changed as a player.

“It doesn’t bother me. It is easy to blame what I am doing but it is working so I will take it.”

According to World Snooker Tour’s seasonal average shot times, Jones is the 107th slowest of 128 players on the tour, with each shot taking over 28 seconds. Only Zhang Anda in this year’s tournament was slower.

The Welshman’s attritional style of play has not been to everyone’s taste, however. As Jones headed into his first World Championship final, he blasted “pathetic” criticism from opponents Stuart Bingham and Judd Trump, who both implied his frustrating tactics had affected their rhythm and ultimately contributed to their defeats.

The pair will be eager to write their names into the history books at the Crucible in what has been an unpredictable tournament this year with plenty of upsets. Wilson carried a five-frame lead into Monday in the race to 18 frames.

But Jones has proven to be a fierce competitor and able to grind out victories from difficult positions, leaving the final delicately poised with one session remaining.