Dream comes true for Dott

Queen fan Graeme Dott could have been forgiven for thinking: ‘Is this the real life, or is this just fantasy?’ after winning his first 888.com World Championship crown in a marathon final with Peter Ebdon.

Dott was an 80-1 outsider at the start of the tournament but his wish to be taken more seriously will be realised after triumphing 18-14 and collecting the £200,000 (€290,000) first prize.

It completed a remarkable turnaround in fortunes for Rangers fanatic Dott, who was at his lowest ebb two and a half years ago when he broke his cue in half at an M6 service station on his way home from the Welsh Open.

The match was never a classic but will be remembered for the longest frame in 29 years of world snooker at the Crucible Theatre: 74 minutes and eight seconds in frame 27.

Dott admitted he thought his chances of taking the crown were slipping away after Ebdon won six frames in a row to reduce his deficit to 15-13.

He said: “This is a dream come true and a big turnaround from when I broke my cue. I think I might have done the same had I not won! I honestly thought I had blown it.”