First man through to the final of this year’s Scottish Professional Championship is World Championship favourite John Higgins who today produced a fabulous display to see off old rival Stephen Hendry in the first semi-final without the loss of a frame…
Match Summary – Chris Irving
World number one John Higgins treated the crowd to a magnificent display of world class snooker this afternoon as he whitewashed Stephen Hendry in the semi-final of the Scottish Snooker Championships in Clydebank.
The seven time world champion Stephen Hendry spent more time in his chair than at the table as Higgins sent out a message to the snooker world. Higgins made it look easy from the off as he took the first frame in one visit with a break of 136, the highest of the tournament so far.
The Wizard from Wishaw was simply a joy to watch everytime he was at the table and to his credit, when asked to dig deep in saftety battles, he showed that both sides of his game are perfect at the moment by winning those as well. He raced into a three frame lead in no time and it all looked over at the break as he went 4-0 up, only one away from reaching the final.
You could sense that many in the crowd were hoping for a Hendry comeback just to add to the afternoon’s entertainment and perhaps turn this match into a spectacle but Higgins had other ideas. It became clear seconds into what was to be the last frame that Higgins was going to finish the job off quickly and perhaps save some energy for tomorrow night’s final. His long potting had been impressive all afternoon but it was absolutely perfect in the last as he pulled off a spectacular long red to take control and close out the match. A brilliant 125 finished Hendry off as the crowd rose to their feet to applaud what was a special performance from a truly special player.
Higgins oozed with confidence after the match and expressed great delight at his overall performance.
“I’m delighted with the way I played. I only missed a couple really and Stephen didn’t have much time on the table so delighted to reach the final. Whenever you play like that especially against someone of Stephen’s quality, it’s great. I’m full of confidence and hitting that ball well so I’m really happy. I got a couple of nice breaks too so it was a good afternoon all round.”
He admitted he would relish a meeting with young Anthony McGill should he get past Graeme Dott. He said:
“If Anthony wins it would be a great atmosphere in here and it would be a special occasion.”