LONDON, Dec. 13 (Xinhua) -- Mark Selby defended his title at the Scottish Snooker Open after beating six-time world champion Ronnie O'Sullivan 9-3 on Sunday.

The 37-year-old Selby started the final well by leading the first session 6-2 in the afternoon. He kept his momentum in the evening's second session, only losing the 10th frame before winning his 19th ranking title.

"To win any tournament is fantastic, but when you are going back as defending champion, it is always nice to try and win it again," Selby told the World Snooker Tour website.

O'Sullivan described his journey during the tournament as a slide. "It has been a tough week, apart from the first round where I was pretty flawless. From that moment onwards, I've had tip problems and it was like I was on a slide downwards."

The Rocket edged China's top player Ding Junhui 6-5 in the quarterfinals, then came from 4-1 down to defeat world number 37 Li Hang of China 6-4 in the semifinals.

"Each match got worse and worse. It is really hard to turn that around," said the 45-year-old O'Sullivan. Enditem

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