SHANGHAI • Yan Bingtao has risen from a poor working-class background and playing to support his cancer-stricken mother to become China's latest sporting prodigy.

The 20-year-old snooker star stunned four-time world champion John Higgins 10-8 to claim the prestigious Masters title on Sunday in Milton Keynes, England, becoming the tournament's youngest winner in 26 years.

It was the world No. 11's first major title and he is just a year older than Ronnie O'Sullivan was in 1995 when he won the Masters at 19, also beating Higgins.

"I'll be very surprised if he doesn't win at least one or two world titles," six-time world champion O'Sullivan told Eurosport.

Nicknamed "The Chinese Tiger", Yan's roaring triumph in his Masters debut is the culmination of a long struggle which at times seemed destined to end in a heart-breaking whimper.

He was born in Zibo, in China's eastern province of Shandong and his first taste of holding a cue was on a rickety outdoor billiards table when he was seven years old.

"I remember that it was uneven, there were leaves in the corners and the white ball went in a strange way," the People's Daily quoted him as saying last year.

But Yan had talent and hoping that his boy had a future in the sport, his father Yan Dong quit his job at a pharmaceutical factory.

Against the advice of friends and family, the pair left home and Yan quit school between eight and nine so they could pursue his snooker dreams in Beijing.

"To save money my father and I rented a room in the suburbs with just a bed and desk, costing 280 yuan (S$57) a month," Yan said.

They could not afford heating and it was so cold that they wore their coats indoors, he once told Chinese media.

Father and son struggled to make ends meet and they admitted defeat, returning home to Zibo. According to some accounts, the family sold most of their possessions to fund Yan's career.

In 2013, they were plunged into crisis when Yan's mother, the family breadwinner, was diagnosed with rectal cancer and needed an operation. Earning money to fund his mother's recovery motivated him to enter "more and more" tournaments, the People's Daily said.

At 13, with his reputation on the rise, Yan began competing as a wild card at professional events. A year later, he became the youngest winner of the World Amateur Snooker Championship. He has been on a sharp upward trajectory since, turning professional in 2015, moving to England to further his career and capturing his first ranking title in Riga, Latvia in 2019.

Yan, whose £250,000 (S$452,000) cheque for winning the Masters represents the biggest payday of his career, is well known for his dedication and hard work.

He is said to be the best of the next generation of Chinese players and touted in domestic media as the successor to 33-year-old Ding Junhui, who became the first Chinese player to win the Masters in 2011, and has long been his country's and Asia's best player.

In a touching denouement, Yan's girlfriend translated his post-match TV interview to English.

But her boyfriend's thoughts inevitably soon turned to the two people who gambled everything for him. "My mum and dad were watching on TV, they probably didn't sleep tonight," he said.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE