The Scotsman

Higgins cruises into semis but admits he’ll be nervous against Allen

- By CHARLIE BENNETT

He may be a two-time champion but John Higgins admits he will be fighting nerves when he walks out to face Mark Allen for a place in the Dafabet Masters final tonight.

The Scottish star looked completely relaxed in his 6-1 semi-final win against Wales’ Ryan Day and, as the only former winner left in the draw, he is the new favourite to win snooker’s second biggest tournament.

But the Wizard of Wishaw is no longer a regular in the final stages of the biggest tournament­s and it no longer comes naturally to him to perform when the spotlight is on.

“Mark has not been in the semi-finals of the big TV events so I am hoping experience will play a part but neither have I lately,” he said.

“I got to the final of the World Championsh­ips and that is it really in the last six or seven years so I am going to be really feeling the nerves. Mark is a great player and I have a lot of respect for him because he is a great player. We always have some great matches and I know he will raise his game so I will have to as well.

“Mark is fancying it now, he has beaten the main guy, he has beaten O’sullivan, so he will be really up for it.”

The winner of that match will take on either Judd Trump or Kyren Wilson, after Trump beat Shaun Murphy 6-4 in yesterday’s other quarter-final.

Watch the London Masters Live on Eurosport and Eurosport Player with Colin Murray and analysis from Neil Robertson, Jimmy White and Neal Foulds.

 ??  ?? John Higgins: New favourite.
John Higgins: New favourite.

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