Luca Brecel makes classy gesture to defeated Mark Selby amid wife’s health drama

NEW World Snooker champion Luca Brecel told Mark Selby and wife Vikki to “stay strong” in a classy message after triumphing The Crucible.

Brecel held his nerve to beat Selby 18-15 and claim a maiden world title in a thrilling match.

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A spirited Selby fightback saw The Jester from Leicester get to within one frame at 16-15, before Brecel kicked on to win.

The Belgian then went on to send Selby a classy message as he spoke after the epic match.

Brecel said: “I want to say to Mark and Vikki: Please stay strong.”

Speaking after his defeat, four-time world champion Selby said on his wife Vikki: “She has been poorly but is coming out of the other side of it now. Hopefully things will be okay.

“It was nice what Luca said. He didn’t know. I spoke to him on Sunday and told the situation. He has mentioned it. He didn’t have to – fair play to him.

“It’s been tough with things going on with Vikki.

“Since January, I’ve not really been practising. For a few weeks it was tough, coping and managing my own mental health and what’s been going on with Vikki.

“Hopefully we are out of the other side of it.”

Selby and Vikki have a daughter, Sofia Maria, who was born in 2014.

The couple married in 2010, with Selby also saying on BBC Sport “health is the most important” thing following Monday’s defeat.

Brecel was moved to tears after his victory, and spoke magnanimously after scooping a mammoth £500,000 in prize money.

He told BBC Sport: “It is amazing. I cannot see through the tears.

“Mark made it so tough, he is the worst opponent to have, he just keeps coming back. He is such a fighter. I don’t know how I did.

“Snooker is a mental sport. I could have lost in the first round. If I had, people would have said again, ‘he has lost first round’. Now I am the winner. Snooker is  all about the small margins. It is crazy.

“I have the best team, best friends, parents and girlfriend. If you don’t have the team it makes it difficult to play the game.

“I won’t practice for a couple of weeks and months. I will enjoy this. It has been a cray week. No practice, just partying. It shouldn’t be legal.”