Higgins cements place as one of the Crucible greats with brilliant 147

John Higgins etched his name deeper into Crucible folklore by becoming only the seventh player to strike a maximum 147 break at the World Snooker Championship.

Not since the great Stephen Hendry achieved the feat back in 2012 had a player compiled a maximum but four-time world champion Higgins ended the eight-year wait in style, as a brilliant visit against Kurt Maflin secured the tenth 147 of his career.

Cliff Thorburn was the first to accomplish the feat in 1983 while Jimmy White, Ronnie O’sullivan, Mark Williams, Ali Carter and Hendry followed suit over the next 29 years and it was Higgins, right, who became the latest snooker immortal.

The table looked promising from the very beginning, as the world No 5 expertly bridged over the pack of reds to rack up his first point in the bottom right pocket. And from there he found that brilliant fluency that has enabled him to romp to 30 ranking event titles, potting red, black, red, black in mesmerising fashion to cue anticipation of the unthinkable.

Tom Ford, Stuart Bingham and Maflin himself came close to achieving the feat in their first-round matches but it was Higgins who looked the bestplaced to go all the way, with the reds favourably distributed at the bottom end of the table. A brilliant pot into the middle pocket on the penultimate red paved the way and once Higgins got on to the colours, there was no looking back.

He held his nerve with aplomb to add his name to a glittering roll call of former players, the tenth maximum of his career and his first at the Crucible to further his status as a World Championship great.

Higgins may have had the big frame on the board but the match against Maflin isn’t going his own way, locked at 8-8 going into last night’s final session.

The first to 13 will book his place in the Crucible quarterfinals, with the Scot winning four of the last five frames – including the last one on the black – to restore parity after two intense sessions.

● Live snooker returns to Eurosport and the Eurosport app. Watch the World Championship from 31st July – 16th August with analysis from Jimmy White.