Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
King enjoying snooker after ousting Higgins
MARK King is enjoying his snooker again after staging an impressive comeback to defeat John Higgins at the UK Championship in York.
The world No 21 won four of the last five frames for a 6-5 victory to reach the quarter-finals at the Barbican Centre.
Three-time champion Higgins, the fourth seed, held leads of 4-2 and 5-4 but King’s battling qualities came to the fore as he levelled the match and forced a deciding frame, which he clinched with break of 69 — his highest of the match.
“There was a packed crowd in there and if you can’t get yourself up for those matches, you might as well just pack up,” King said.
“Even when I was behind I didn’t really do anything wrong. He played two good snookers and I just missed them. It wasn’t like I twitched on anything, he played some good shots and ended up winning.
“But I just felt really confident in myself and told myself to keep calm and stay confident. I felt comfortable and kept saying to myself just don’t miss anything easy.
“I said that about 18 months ago I was playing to pay bills and now I’m not, I’m playing to enjoy and I’m working hard and I’m comfortable. It’s not as if I need to pot this black because the mortgage hasn’t been paid or whatever.
“Now I can play my game and relax and enjoy it. But it’s about working hard and enjoying it.”
Higgins is the latest big-name casualty to exit the competition after holder Mark Selby, Judd Trump and Ding Junhui all failed to progress, leaving 42-year-old five-time world champion Ronnie O’Sullivan as the highest-ranked player l eft i n the tournament.
Asked if he felt he could lift the trophy, King said: “I don’t fear anybody. I’ve played Ronnie loads of times and I’ve done well against him.
“It isn’t like years ago. When someone beat Stephen (Hendry) or Steve (Davis) people wondered how he’d been beaten.”
Stephen Maguire beat fellow-Scot Graeme Dott 6-2.