Stephen Hendry left red faced after Ronnie O’Sullivan mishap compiled by Shaun Murphy

Stephen Hendry has had to eat his words after Shaun Murphy's surprise victory at the Masters, having initially backed Ronnie O'Sullivan.

Murphy, 42, clinched his fourth Triple Crown success with a 10-7 win over Kyren Wilson at Alexandra Palace. His final win acted as a brilliant conclusion to a tournament that had already seen him defeat Mark Allen, Neil Robertson and Gary Wilson.

S nooker legend Hendry didn't hide his shock at 'The Magician's' triumph during his chat on the Snooker Club podcast, having believed O'Sullivan was set to take home his ninth title. However, 'The Rocket' withdrew from the competition due to medical reasons, not long after a stunning defeat by China's Si Jiahui in the Saudi Masters' quarter-finals.

Whilst Murphy relished his win, Hendry owned up to his misjudgment, saying: "Once again I have been proven wrong. I keep on making my predictions. I predicted Ronnie would win either Saudi or the Masters.

"He lost the second round at Saudi and did not turn up for the Masters and I said Shaun would struggle to win while he is a pundit. So, yeah, I'm pretty good at this sort of thing."

Murphy stormed to an early 6-2 lead in the final, only for Wilson to mount an impressive comeback, winning five of the next seven frames to narrow the gap to 8-7. However, Murphy drew on his experience and confidence to win the next two frames and claim his second Masters title.

Reflecting on Murphy's performance, Hendry said: "All joking aside, it was a wonderful, dominant performance all week from Shaun Murphy. He just had something in his eyes, and it all came together for him.

"He was a different player last week. I think working with Peter Ebdon has definitely focused him. He was completely focused. Whenever he