John Higgins and Mark Allen played out a Crucible classic

World Snooker results: John Higgins beats Mark Allen 13-12 to reach quarter-finals at the Crucible

By Sporting Life

00:22 · MON April 30, 2024

John Higgins held his nerve to get the better of Mark Allen 13-12 in a Crucible epic that set the World Championship alight on Monday night.

Higgins had looked beaten at 10-7 down and then again when trailing 12-11, especially when he left the green ball close to the pocket as Allen closed in on victory.

But the Northern Irishman missed the thin cut, leaving Higgins with a chance which he grabbed with both hands, potting a nerveless pink to the centre pocket to take the match the distance.

Allen was in first in the decider and again Higgins looked to be heading for the exit door only for Allen to miss a red with the rest on 62, three or four pots from the winning line.

Higgins came to the table needing to clear it to somehow win and, beginning with a trademark double upon which the entire match rested, he set about doing that.

A misjudged pot on the penultimate red left Higgins low on the black to complicate matters but he powered in the difficult final red and went on to clear the colours in a show of defiance and determination that had at times appeared to have left him.

As the blue, pink and black were each despatched, Allen could only wonder how he'd managed to let the match slip through his fingers, as Higgins held his arms aloft before accepting the typically generous praise of his vanquished opponent.

It was just the eighth World Championship match at the Crucible to be decided on the final black. It might have taken the tournament time to catch fire, but on the night which also saw Stuart Bingham beat Jack Lisowski 13-11, catch fire it did.

Asked where the clearance ranks in his career, Higgins told World Snooker Tour: "It's the best. It will live with me forever. After everything that has gone before over the last two years, to stand up under the most intense pressure is a very proud moment for me.

"When I came to the table I knew that the double was my only chance, and when that went in, I knew it was on. I felt calm and I just tried to stay positive and keep pushing the cue through straight.

"This should do wonders for me because I know I can do it, and this is the hardest place to play."