John Higgins didn’t hold back after coming through a nerve-shredding decider to beat Xiao Guodong 13-12 and book his place in the World Snooker Championship quarter-finals — and he made sure Ronnie O’Sullivan and Luca Brecel copped a bit of the blame for the drama.
The Scot had to come back for two final frames late at night after their match ran over earlier in the day. In the second-to-last frame, a costly kick caused Higgins to miss a key shot, giving Xiao a chance to force a decider, according to the Express.
For those not in the know, a ‘kick’ happens when the cue ball doesn’t strike the object ball cleanly, often because of chalk dust or moisture. Newer taom chalk has pretty much wiped out kicks in professional snooker, but not everyone’s on board with it. Some players, including Ronnie and Brecel, still stick with the old-school triangle chalk most people recognise from snooker halls everywhere.
When BBC pundit John Parrott set up the clip of the mishap, he asked Higgins: “We were going to show you a bit of the second to last frame. What about, you got a kick?”
Higgins wasted no time in pointing fingers, joking: “Do you know why I got a kick? Because Luca was on previously. Luca doesn’t use the (taom chalk).”
Parrott, clearly gobsmacked, asked: “Have they not brushed the table?”
Higgins defended the cleaners but made it clear it was a problem, saying: “They brushed but it’s still really messy. So it’s difficult when you play guys like Ronnie and Luca and they’re using the triangle chalk. It’s a bit of a nightmare.”
Luckily for everyone involved, Higgins managed to steady himself in the 25th frame, take the win, and set up a tasty quarter-final clash with Mark Williams.
Reflecting afterwards on BBC Four, Higgins said: “It was a weird feeling just coming back for one or two frames. When I missed a black earlier this afternoon, I thought the snooker gods would not forgive me.
“The three sessions — I really enjoyed them because it’s an unbelievable venue to play in. You play some good minutes, the pressure is on you and the crowd are all getting involved. You can’t replicate playing here.”
Looking ahead to facing Williams, another member of snooker’s famous Class of ’92, Higgins added: “It was different maybe 20-odd years ago when we were really big rivals. Now we walk into the practice room and give each other a nod as if to say: ‘How are we still here? How are we still here competing?'”
He added warmly: “It’s incredible [that we are still going], and you throw Ronnie into the mix as well. Three special players, you have got to say that. I don’t care if I’m calling myself that a little bit.”
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