1 of 14
Matthew Stevens and Shaun Murphy prepare for the start of the World Championship final at The Crucible

2 of 14
Murphy takes a close opening frame but the players are unhappy with the cue ball and it is changed

3 of 14
Stevens settles into his rhythm quicker and rattles in breaks of 54 and 60 to take the next two frames

4 of 14
Murphy, ranked 48 in the world, edges a scrappy fourth with a fluke on the pink to level at the mid-session interval

5 of 14
Stevens is more relaxed after the break and takes the next two frames to move into a 4-2 lead

6 of 14
Murphy misses a great opportunity to take the ninth frame and also loses the 10th to fall 7-3 behind

7 of 14
Stevens responds with breaks of 80 and 86 and takes a nervy final frame of the day to lead 10-6 overnight

8 of 14
But Murphy begins the final day well and wins three of the first four frames of the session to cut the deficit to 11-9

9 of 14
Murphy notches a 137 break to make it 11-10 and then levels the match after Stevens misses the blue in the 22nd frame

10 of 14
Stevens is 20 points down in the following frame but wins it to lead 12-11 at the end of the afternoon session

11 of 14
Murphy shows no sign of nerves in the evening session - he wins five out of seven frames to lead 16-14

12 of 14
Stevens looks concerned - but he steadies his play to win the next two frames and level at 16-16

13 of 14
But Murphy's nerve seems unbreakable and he wins the next two frames to become world champion

14 of 14
Murphy holds aloft the trophy after winning the 2005 World Snooker Championship