Venue: Crucible Theatre, Sheffield Dates: 15 April-1 May |
Coverage: Watch unrecorded connected BBC TV and Red Button with uninterrupted sum connected BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport website and the BBC Sport app |
Luca Brecel says helium is stepping into "unknown territory" successful a clash of contrasting styles against four-time champion Mark Selby successful the World Championship final.
Brecel, 28, is the archetypal subordinate from mainland Europe to diagnostic successful a Crucible last - and had not won a lucifer astatine the celebrated venue until this year.
And portion 'the Belgian Bullet' has won admirers for his prodigious endowment and swashbuckling attacking play, Selby's benignant is the polar other - grinding down opponents with his granite information and superb match-play.
Brecel wrote himself into the past books with his stunning semi-final comeback triumph against Si Jiahui and, having successfully navigated a best-of-33 brushwood for the archetypal clip successful his career, helium present faces different archetypal erstwhile helium takes connected Selby implicit 35.
"Selby is simply a Crucible king, it'll beryllium a precise hard crippled for maine and helium volition beryllium the favourite," said Brecel, who has spoken of needing to conflict boredom implicit the longer format.
"It is chartless territory for maine truthful it is going to beryllium hard but I americium looking guardant to the challenge. I volition conscionable play my stuff.
"If I effort to play his crippled I volition person nary accidental due to the fact that helium is truthful clever successful the information department."
While Brecel became the youngest subordinate ever to vie astatine the Crucible successful 2012 aged 17 years and 45 days, it has taken him much than a decennary and six visits to genuinely get connected the sport's biggest stage.
And his 2 ranking titles - the 2021 Scottish Open and 2022 Championship League - airy successful examination with Selby's 22 and 9 Triple Crown successes, portion the Englishman has besides won their 3 erstwhile meetings - including this season's English Open final.
"I person won earlier but this is different," Brecel said.
"He has much acquisition than me. I'm going to archer myself to play each framework arsenic though it is beingness and decease due to the fact that aft this determination volition beryllium nary tournaments for a fewer months truthful I volition effort to enactment each my vigor into this.
"I inactive conflict to header [with agelong matches] but that is wherefore I play my crippled successful the mode I do, free-flowing and going for everything, due to the fact that if I played similar Selby I would conflict to triumph specified a agelong game."
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Tense victories implicit Ricky Walden and Mark Williams laid the level for Brecel to stun seven-time champion Ronnie O'Sullivan successful the quarter-finals.
But distant from the greenish baize helium has deed the headlines for his unorthodox preparation, with conscionable 15 minutes of signifier nether his loop and past getting "drunk arsenic hell" midway done the tournament.
"Before the tourney I was conscionable retired partying, staying up precocious until six oregon 7 successful the morning, playing Fifa with my friends, having drinks and not practising," Brecel told BBC Sport.
"After I bushed Mark Williams I went location and got backmost astatine 7 successful the greeting and past went retired again that aforesaid time until 5 oregon six successful the greeting and was drunk arsenic hell."
World fig 10 Brecel is 1 of 3 Belgian players successful the apical 100 alongside Julien Leclercq and Ben Mertens.
However, Germany's Lukas Kleckers is the lone different subordinate from mainland Europe connected that list, aft Alexander Ursenbacher's relegation from the main tour, and Brecel is hopeful his tally - and a imaginable satellite rubric - blazes a way for much to follow.
"It would beryllium brainsick for snooker successful Belgium and Europe," helium added. "It would beryllium thing I could not person dreamed particularly this year, with nary mentation [and] I had ne'er won a crippled here. It is immoderate story.
"I anticipation radical are inspired. I conscionable anticipation radical privation to get to cognize snooker amended due to the fact that it is specified a large sport. I perceive that it's boring truthful galore times but if you truly get to cognize it, it is fantastic to watch."
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