John Higgins is through to the semi-finals of the BetVictor Scottish Open for the fourth time in his career, after beating Tom Ford 5-3 at the Morningside Sport Centre in Edinburgh.
The legendary Scot is hunting a maiden title in his home event, having already come close to capturing the Stephen Hendry Trophy on a number of occasions. Higgins was runner-up in 2016 and 2021 to Marco Fu and Luca Brecel respectively.
Higgins has been struggling to find his best game in previous round this week, but the 31-time ranking event winner now finds himself just two wins a way from a 32nd and a first since the 2021 Players Championship.
The opening stages of this evening’s encounter saw Higgins begin to hit form, with the Glaswegian firing in breaks of 132, 61 and 64 to establish a quickfire 3-1 lead. However, world number 18 Ford dug deep to claw his way back into contention.
Breaks of 58, 56 and 99 saw the Leicester cueman take three in response to restore parity at 3-3. Higgins took a hard fought seventh to stop the rot and a break of 71 in the eighth saw him over the line as a 5-3 victor.
Higgins said: “I think Tom put me under pressure to go 3-3. I wasn’t getting clear cut chances, it was half chances. He missed a couple in the seventh which was a big one. He could have got on top, but luckily I managed to get the frame and finished the match off.
“It was a big win for me. I’ve lost a few times to Tom and he is such an improved player. His head doesn’t really go the way it used to in previous years. He is a top player. I know I’m going to have to play well tomorrow night now.”
Up next for Higgins will be Thailand’s Noppon Saengkham, who earned a 5-3 victory over maiden ranking event quarter-finalist Sanderson Lam.
Saengkham is gunning for a first trip to a ranking event final, having lost in the semis four times. He’s met Higgins twice in the Scottish Open previously, with the Scot prevailing in 2021 and the Thai scoring a win in 2020.
Saengkham said: “I’ve never got past the semi-finals. It would be good to happen tomorrow if I can, because one of my targets and one of my dreams is to win a trophy. I hope I can do this one day, I don’t know when.
“I think John is a top player. I hope tomorrow is going to be my day. I will just enjoy the game. I don’t know what will happen, but I will enjoy, smile and fight.”
Defending champion Gary Wilson earned his progression with a blistering 5-0 defeat of former Shoot Out Champion Chris Wakelin.
Wilson put on a break building barrage with runs of 68, 96, 118, 68 and 82. He faces China’s Zhou Yuelong in the semi-finals after he scored a nerve shredding 5-4 win over 2015 World Champion Stuart Bingham.
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