Grand Prix 2009: Higgins v Robertson Frame by Frame

What an incredible match we have seen today. Neil Robertson is through to the final of the 2009 Grand Prix after a classic tussle with defending champion John Higgins, click below to read how it unfolded with my live updates…

Click here to see how the result have affected the provisional rankings.

John Higgins 5-6 Neil Robertson

0-114(114), 90(90)-0, 8-70(66), 131(60,71)-0, 71(35)-10, 0-130(130), 48-63, 0-128(128), 84(84c)-49(49), 78(57)-8, 48-51

Frame One:

The first chance of the match falls to Neil Robertson after a failed attempt at a double from Higgins left the red hanging over the yellow pocket. Neil has split the reds and looks to be in good form early on…and he goes 1-0 up with a magnificent break of 114. That is a real statement of intent from the world number nine…

Frame Two

John has been playing the game for long enough not to let such a start by an opponent faze him however and after a safety battle he has managed to earn the first opportunity to score heavily in frame two. The black is currently safe so it is not straightforward but both pink and blue are available…

Brilliant response from Higgins, he’s taken the frame with a break of 90 thanks to a number of pinks and blues and looked very impressive in doing so. This match is more than living up to the billing so far…1-1.

Frame Three

After the scoring of the first two frames, the third has begun with what has so far been a high quality safety duel between the two. Who will blink first…surprisinly it’s Higgins after he could not not escape from a snooker behind the yellow and left Neil an easy starter to one of the corner pockets. Where the balls are however I think he will do well to get more than 30 points here, though it would certainly be a useful lead…

Well this has been fabulous stuff, Robertson has taken the frame with a break of 66 and the two players have pot success percentages of 100% for John and 98% for Neil!

Frame Four

Great long red from John to kick off the final frame before the interval, can the standard continue? He hasn’t been able to win the frame in one visit but he has at amassed a 60 point lead and left the yellow close to the side cushion…

Brilliant shot from Higgins, snookered behind the yellow and he has played off a cushion and potted a red to the left-centre. The fact that he still has a pot success rate of 100% after four frames tells you how good the standard has been this afternoon.

Frame Five

Back out after the interval now and shock horror, John has missed a pot! Indeed the interval appears to have disrupted the rhythm of both players at the moment. This is now by far the most scrappy frame of the match, though it remains fascinating all the same.

Nice break from Higgins to open up what is a very usefuly 34 point lead where the remainining four reds are…and he finishes off the job to go into the lead for the first time in the match.

Frame Six

After that scrappy fifth frame we are back to the one-visit fare as Neil Robertson gets in and moves into a fifty point lead before leaving himself a tough cut-back that had he missed, would have almost certainly cost him the frame. This did not stop him from going for it however and as the red dropped, the white scattered the remaining reds far and wide and it now looks like it could be his second century of the match…and it is, a magnificent 130. 3-3 and I still would not like to call a winner…

Frame Seven

Neil has managed to earn a slender lead of 17-0 but there is now an ongoing safety exchange which has as I type been won by John Higgins. Despite an unbelievable fluke on a red however, a missed blue has given Neil a second opportunity to go back into the lead in this match…

But what a reprieve for Higgins, Neil has surprisingly left a black hanging in the jaws and now John has a chance to make himself favourite for the frame if not actually win it himself…but he has broken down too! Having both had good chances this is turning into a big frame to win for both players now…

And it has gone to Neil Robertson on the final pink, could that be a turning point in this match?

Frame Eight

For the first time in the match a player has managed to open up a two frame gap and Neil now leads 5-3 following his third century break this afternoon. With Higgins not being able to score it certainly looks like that scrappy seventh frame could be decisive, though you cannot rule out the Scot just yet…

Frame Nine:

Neil gets in first with a break of 49 but he just runs out of position and now John is in with a chance to keep his hopes alive. Can’t afford any mistakes…and he hasn’t made any, he has cleared the table with an excellent break of 84 under pressure.

Reminiscent of those matches against Cope and Selby back in April…

Frame Ten:

Some response from John this, he looks flawless at the moment and in prime position on a break of 57, looks like we should be getting ready for a decider…

And a decider we shall have after John breaks down on 78. Hard to argue that it deserves one and you would have to make Higgins favourite…

Frame Eleven:

First chance to Neil Robertson following a brilliant long red into the green pocket at pace and with the reds everywhere, this is an excellent opportunity for frame and match…but a missed red to the right centre has given John a great opportunity to seal it himself…

Oh wow, John left himself a tricky final red but having potted it, managed to knock the pink in as well! Incredible drama and now Neil is faced with a tough yellow to start a potentially match-winning break…but he plays safe on this and indeed his next two half-chances.

This is incredible, John manages to both fluke the yellow into the left centre and in the process snooker himself at the same time! He gives Neil a chances to cut-back the green into the right middle  which he misses, before John pots it with a great rest shot. Just when you thought that John had won the match however, he’s overhit the brown, missed it into the yellow pocket and now it is Neil with the match-winning chance…and he’s not on the final black!

So we have a black ball game for a place in the final…and unbelievably Neil has attempted to double it the length of the table into the green pocket but having missed it, somehow left it just missable. John attempted to snick it in, he had no choice, but he’s just missed it and immediately offering the handshake, Neil is into the final!

Incredible match, better than the rest of the week put together I think.