Panchaya Channoi Stuns Reanne Evans to Claim Women's World Title in Dongguan

Thai Teenager Wins World and Under-21 Double in Commanding Final Display

Panchaya Channoi became the Women's World Snooker Champion on 19 May 2026 after defeating Reanne Evans 6-2 in the final held in Dongguan, China. The 18-year-old Thai player, ranked 15th in the world, produced a composed and clinical performance to deny Evans what would have been a record-extending 13th world title — the Englishwoman's most significant defeat in the tournament decider across a career spanning more than two decades at the top of the women's game.

Century Breaks Set the Tone from the First Frame

Channoi wasted no time in establishing her authority. A century break in the opening frame signalled her intentions, and she moved into a 3-1 lead before Evans — 40 years old and appearing in her first World Championship final since 2019 — managed to claw one back. The brief revival proved short-lived. Channoi responded with a break of 107 in the sixth frame to move 4-2 ahead, then took the seventh before a run of 59 in the eighth sealed victory and the Mandy Fisher Trophy. The margin of 6-2 reflected the balance of play throughout the session.

Evans' Historic Career Placed in Context

For all the significance of Channoi's achievement, the final also marked a notable statistical milestone for Evans. Prior to this match, the Wolverhampton-born player had never lost a Women's World Championship final — a record that had stood across 12 title victories. Her dominant period between 2005 and 2014 saw her win the championship for ten consecutive years, a run that remains one of the most extraordinary stretches of sustained excellence in the sport's history, regardless of gender. Evans returned to the final stage for the first time in seven years having not appeared in the decider since her 2019 triumph, and while the 6-2 scoreline underlines that this was not a closely contested affair, her presence in the final at 40 still speaks to her enduring competitive quality at elite level.

Channoi Joins Exclusive Company in Women's Snooker History

Beyond the headline result, Channoi's victory carries significant historical weight in its own right. She became only the second player to claim both the Women's World Championship and the Under-21 title in the same calendar cycle, following China's Bai Yulu, who achieved the double in 2024 (source: snooker.org). That consistency across age-group and senior competition at such a young age places Channoi among the most promising players the women's tour has produced in recent years.

Channoi is also the third Thai player to win the Women's World Championship, continuing a notable run of success for Thailand in the women's game. Mink Nutcharut — who competed on both the women's and professional main tours — was the first Thai champion, followed by Siripaporn Nuanthakhamjan, and now Channoi completes a trio that underlines the strength of the country's snooker development infrastructure.

Rankings and What Comes Next

Channoi's world ranking of 15 ahead of this event will rise substantially following her triumph, though the precise movement will depend on the full points allocation once confirmed by World Snooker (source: snooker.org). Winning a world title from outside the top ten is not uncommon in the women's game — where ranking points have historically been distributed across a smaller number of events — but it does suggest Channoi has achieved this result at a stage in her career where further improvement can reasonably be expected.

For Evans, the defeat ends what had been a strong return to the final. At 40, questions about the longevity of her competitive peak are inevitable, but her route to the final in Dongguan demonstrated she remains a force capable of reaching the latter stages of the sport's most prestigious women's event. Whether this marks a definitive shift in the women's game's hierarchy, or whether Evans has further title bids in her, remains to be seen.

What is beyond dispute is that Panchaya Channoi's 6-2 victory represents one of the more complete performances seen in a Women's World Championship final in recent memory — built on century breaks, steady scoring throughout, and a composure that belied her 18 years.