John Higgins stormed away from the table in disgust following a bizarre incident that baffled a commentator. The four-time world champion began his World Open campaign in Yushan, China, with a routine 5-1 victory over Mark Davis.
However, the match featured an incident which was anything but routine. As he lined up the pink to a corner pocket, Higgins was cueing awkwardly above a red. The Wizard of Wishaw sunk the colour, only for him to foul as he made significant contact with the red, which rolled across the table.
As an annoyed Higgins marched back to his chair, stunned Eurosport commentator and former snooker pro Neal Foulds said: “Goodness me, I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like that.
“The red has moved right across the table. He must have knocked it with his arm or something.”
As a replay was shown, Foulds added: “I haven’t seen a red ball move like that after no contact with the cue ball. It just went across the table.”
Higgins, who turns 50 in May, is looking to end his four-year wait for a 32nd ranking title, with his last coming back in February 2021. The Scottish legend, who began the World Open ranked 13th in the world, says a simple lack of practice is behind his trophy drought, even though he continues to perform at a high level.
“I’ll be honest. It’s not rocket science,” he said, per the Metro. “I can do it in fits and bursts, but it’s maybe because you don’t put in the same level of practice as you used to do and that maybe comes back to haunt you at the critical moments in the big, big events.
“I’d love to be able to practice more, but I just can’t. My mind just can’t take it in. I just don’t have the capabilities to do it.
“I still love playing, I still love competing. I want to be competitive when I come to big events, of course I do, but that’s maybe the deciding factor of it. It can be as simple as that really.”
World champion Kyren Wilson and world No.1 Judd Trump are among the snooker stars in action in Yushan. Ronnie O’Sullivan is again missing after pulling out of the tournament, although the Rocket has indicated he will play at next month’s World Grand Prix in Hong Kong.
