Smith holds on to beat Schindler in Euros final

Ross Smith won the European Championship for a second time, beating Germany’s Martin Schindler 11-8 in the final in Dortmund. The comeback victory adds another major title to Smith’s year and came after world champion Luke Littler was eliminated in the quarter-finals.

Smith surged to an 8-2 lead in the best-of-21 match after winning six legs in a row, but Schindler fought back to 9-7 before Smith secured the win. Smith had beaten Luke Woodhouse 10-6 and Gerwyn Price 11-7 on his way to the final; Schindler reached it with wins over Jonny Clayton and Krzysztof Ratajski. Ratajski had knocked out Littler 10-6, extending Littler’s wait for a first European Championship title.