Beaten Higgins ‘played like Scotland’
John Higgins crashed out with a whimper in the second round of the European Masters to bogeyman Mark Davis.
The Scot was off the boil as he slumped to a 4-1 defeat to the Englishman in Belgium – his eighth loss in their last nine meetings.
Higgins was likened to being as unbeatable as Germany at football in the build-up to the tournament.
But the Wizard of Wishaw joked he was more like Gordon Strachan’s side on the day.
He said:“That’s a nice compliment but I played like Scotland at football there.
“I’m disappointed but it happens sometimes.
“One day you play okay and the next you don’t.” “Mark played pretty well. “In the short formats if the other guy gets the initiative then they’re pretty hard to stop.”
Higgins had enjoyed a successful Indian Open but admits fitness may hinder him.
He said:“Fitness probably isn’t my strong point, so that could count against me.
“Maybe if I got a bit fitter it could help me at the World Championship. But I have shown in India it is not all about fitness; I am still winning tournaments and I am one of the fattest on tour!”
Higgins slipped one place to number three in the new world rankings and next up as he looks to challenge the top two pairing of Mark Selby and Judd Trump is the English Open in Barnsley.
Last year, the 42-year-old made a run to the last eight before he was knocked out by Trump in the first year of the tournament’s history.