World championship: John Higgins making real mockery of his retirement plans

The 43-year-old – looking to add a fifth world title to a glorious career – lost in the 2017 final to Mark Selby and 12 months ago was pipped at the last by Mark Williams.

He resumes his semi-final with Tamworth’s David Gilbert today trailing 5-3 in their best-of-33 contest, but looking to celebrate 25 consecutive years competing at the Crucible by lifting the famous trophy on Monday.

The statistics are impressive. It is Higgins’s 10th semi-final since first competing in Sheffield in 1995, and he is aiming to reach his eighth final, having being crowned champion in 1998, 2007, 2009 and 2011.

Not bad for a player who admitted earlier in the season he was considering retirement after a disappointing campaign.

“To get back to that one table set-up now is unbelievable,” said Higgins.

Standing in his way is 37-year-old Gilbert, who had not even turned professional when the Scot won his first Crucible title.

His record in Sheffield is poor, having only won one match – in 2012 – in four previous visits.

But Gilbert has risen up the rankings this season to world No 16 and knocked out defending champion Williams and Kyren Wilson on his way to the last four.

Along with Gary Wilson – the former Wallsend taxi driver who was tied 4-4 against Judd Trump in the other semi-final – the pair have competed for the headlines and this year’s best David versus Goliath award.

Higgins has certainly been impressed with them both.

“To see the guys like Gary Wilson and David Gilbert get there for the first time, you can see the delight on their faces,” said Higgins.

“If I was sat at home watching the tournament I’d be wanting David to win, he’s a nice guy.

“David has played far better than me this year so I’m under no illusions how tough a game it’s going to be. The way he has dispatched Mark Williams and Kyren pretty easily, I certainly don’t think I’m the favourite,” he added.

When Higgins took an early 2-0 lead his words could be deemed to have contained a touch of gamesmanship.

But Gilbert levelled at 2-2, a 94 break settling his nerves, before Higgins edged back in front with a 66 break.

The Crucible crowd thought they were witnessing a maximum 147 break in frame six, but – after potting 15 reds – Gilbert ran out of position on the 15th black and faltered on 113.

The £50,000 maximum bonus had gone, but the momentum was with the Englishman, who resumes this morning with a two-frame advantage.

Like Gilbert, 33-year-old Wilson entered his semi-final as a massive underdog.

Having had to win three qualifying games just to reach the Crucible, Wilson is the fifth 
lowest ranked player – at 32 – ever to reach the semi-finals in Sheffield.

But with a 140 clearance in the third frame Wilson spotlighted the form that had accounted for three-time champion Selby in the earlier rounds.

Wilson could have been 3-0 up by then, but after an opening frame break of 61 he missed the pink and Masters champion Trump nipped in to steal.

Another missed pink in frame two ended Wilson’s score on 42, but this time Trump failed to punish his opponent.

A 54 break from world No 4 Trump – the 29-year-old looking to secure a place in his first world final since 2011 – levelled the score at 2-2, before the pair traded the final four frames of the evening’s session.