The 33-year-old triumphed at the Crucible 12 months ago, but has admitted that he lost his way in the aftermath and partied excessively before his wife gave him a wake-up call
Fraser Watson and Fasika Zelealem Senior Sports Reporter
10:39, 20 Apr 2025
Snooker star Kyren Wilson has opened up about the personal cost of his world championship glory - confessing it nearly wrecked his marriage. The 33-year-old, known as 'The Warrior', clinched his first world title at the Crucible last year, defeating Jak Jones 18-14 in a nail-biting final.
Wilson began the defence of his crown against China's Lei Peifan on Saturday morning but succumbed to a stunning first-round 10-9 defeat. Unable to break the infamous 'curse of the Crucible' with no player successfully defending their world title since the tournament moved to Sheffield in 1977, the Englishman will have to wait until next year for the opportunity to regain the prized trophy.
Following his maiden championship win last year, he revealed how he lost his bearings, admitting that his post-victory celebrations spiralled out of control with excessive partying and drinking.
"I think afterwards I was kind of like, searching for the high that becoming a world champion gave me," Wilson shared with TNT Sports. "I went off the rails a bit for a little while."
Married to Sophie, with whom he has two sons, Finley and Bailey, Wilson credits his wife's influence for helping him get back on track and focus on his family duties, reports the Express.
"We had a few words of you know...we could go our separate ways at one point," he said. "You have to rein it in and remember that you're a father.
"You're a husband. You're a professional. It's not easy. You've reached the pinnacle and there's so much excitement and it's just such a buzz. But then it does die down."
He found that winning was the key to regaining his bounce, with four titles under his belt this season including the Xi'an Grand Prix, Northern Ireland Open, German Masters, and Players Championship.
Wilson credits a heart-to-heart with his wife Sophie for his turnaround, revealing: "I won quite early on in Xi'an Grand Prix and all of a sudden I was like that's the high I've been searching for again.
"Sophie sat me down and for two or three weeks before Xi'an she said 'look, it's time to knuckle down. You're a world champion, you're a professional, get on with it.' And I did, I got back to the practice table and went on to win that tournament."