Sport
I’m a 4-time world snooker champion but haven’t won an event for almost FOUR YEARS – but I have titles left in the tank
HUNGRY John Higgins believes a long-awaited 32nd ranking title is on the horizon after he lived to fight another day at the International Championship.
The four-time world champion forced a decider on a re-spotted black before being hauled off for slow play at 5-5 as he secured his quarter-final spot with a dramatic 6-5 win over Lyu Haotian in Nanjing.
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Wishaw’s finest turns 50 next year but still has the burning determination that has unquestionably made him an all-time great of the sport.
Higgins has painfully come up short of success in recent years, with his last ranking crown coming at the 2021 Players Championship.
And the Scot, who lost in the British Open final earlier this season, needs to lift the title this week to qualify for next week’s Champion of Champions.
But he stressed: “I do believe there are titles left in the tank.
“I do think I will be tasting silverware again before I finish. That’s maybe the reason I’m still doing it.
“You never know what’s around the corner for you. You’ve just got to keep believing, keep putting the work it as much as you can at my age.”
Higgins won the first frame but had to fight back from 3-1 and 5-4 down to send the match to a decider with breaks of 54, 60 and 71.
And after winning the tenth frame on a re-spotted black, Higgins returned in the evening with a cool match-clinching run of 68.
Meanwhile, Judd trump failed to reach a quarter-final for the first time this year as he was stunned 6-4 by maximum man Xu Si.
World champion Kyren Wilson hit three century breaks to beat Barry Hawkins 6-2.
Meanwhile, seven-time former world champion Stephen Hendry reckons he could have won a lot more himself – had he ‘reined in’ his attacking instincts.
The 55-year old dominated the game during the 1990s, but ended up going on a SEVEN-YEAR spell without a ranking title between 2005 and 2012.
Hendry said: “Even when me game was on a downward trajectory I still played the same game.
“I still insisted on going for my shots. I would think it was the right shot and kept going for it and kept missing them.
“If I’d have reined it in in the early to mid noughties I could have had success.
“Whether I’d have won a couple of words titles more I don’t know. But I certainly would have been more competitive for longer.
“The game’s changed. I see people turning down pots that I’d be taking on, but it’s because you get punished if you miss.
“Back when I first started playing that was my game. I was more aggressive than guys likes Si Jiahui.”
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International Championship snooker LIVE RESULTS: Higgins in quarter-final action RIGHT NOW, Wilson plays later – updates
Day Four recap
Here are all of yesterday’s Last 16 results.
Lyu 5-6 Higgins
Pang 4-6 Page
Trump 4-6 Si
Wakelin 6-4 Williams
Hawkins 2-6 K. Wilson
Jun 3-6 Ding
Lisowski 3-6 Xiao
G. Wilson 6-3 Selby
Xu Si reacts
Chinese star Xu Si defeated Judd Trump 6-4 to book a place in Thursday’s quarter-finals.
After his win, he said: “It was my mindset during the key moments that helped.
“In the last frame, I felt a bit of tension, but luckily things went well, and I didn’t leave any easy shots.
“Finishing the match felt really good. Sometimes you reach a point where you’re very nervous, and then suddenly you’re not nervous anymore.
“I feel there’s a much smaller gap now between myself and the top players.
“Recently, many Chinese players have been advancing to the latter stages of tournaments, which shows a significant improvement overall.”
Trump record broken
Not that one.
JUDD Trump had his streak of reaching the quarter-finals of every event he has entered in 2024 broken yesterday.
The No1 ranked star was beaten 6-4 by Chinese star Xu Si.
Day four round-up
What a sensational day four of action we had in Nanjing.
Here’s a recap of all the results from the International Championship.
Lyu 5-6 Higgins
Pang 4-6 Page
Trump 4-6 Si
Wakelin 6-4 Williams
Hawkins 2-6 K. Wilson
Jun 3-6 Ding
Lisowski 3-6 Xiao
G. Wilson 6-3 Selby
Quarter-final line-up
Tomorrow there will be a mouthwatering selection of quarter-final match-ups in Nanjing.
Which one are you most looking forward to?
Chris Wakelin v John Higgins
Jackson Page v Xiao Guodong
Xu Si v Gary Wilson
Kyren Wilson v Ding Junhui
Xu Si reaction
Chinese star Xu Si ended Judd Trump’s remarkable record of having at least reached the quarter-finals of every event he has entered this year, by beating him 6-4 in the last 16 earlier today.
Following his remarkable win, Xu said: “It was my mindset during the key moments that helped.
“In the last frame, I felt a bit of tension, but luckily things went well, and I didn’t leave any easy shots.
“Finishing the match felt really good. Sometimes you reach a point where you’re very nervous, and then suddenly you’re not nervous anymore.
“I feel there’s a much smaller gap now between myself and the top players.
“Recently, many Chinese players have been advancing to the latter stages of tournaments, which shows a significant improvement overall.”
Homosexuality is illegal in Saudi Arabia, while Amnesty International has cited the country’s “jailing of women’s rights activists, suppression of free speech and rampant use of the death penalty”.
BBC Sport asked all eight singles players the same question: “Did you personally have any reservations or concerns about coming here given the record on human rights, particularly around women’s rights and the LGBTQ+ community?”
The responses were varied, although there was the sense that players felt free to speak without fear of repercussions. Many said they hoped they could help bring about change.
Several referenced calls that had taken place between players and the WTA, with Jessica Pegula – a member of the WTA’s player council – saying there was “a lot of debate back and forth”.
Zheng Qinwen, Elena Rybakina and Jasmine Paolini all suggested showcasing top-level women’s sport could be a good example within Saudi Arabia.
Swiatek said she was trying to “observe and learn how everything works”, while Sabalenka said: “I saw everything here is quite chill.
“Me personally, I don’t have any issues playing here. I think it’s really important to bring tennis all around the world and inspire [the] young generation.”
Gauff’s response drew on her family’s experience of the move away from racial segregation in the United States.
“Knowing from the past from my grandmother, integrating her school, people aren’t going to like it, but in the long run I think it could be better for everybody,” she said.
But the 20-year-old added: “If I felt uncomfortable or felt like nothing’s happening, then maybe I probably wouldn’t come back.”
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Ryan Kalkbrenner tallied 49 points, 11 rebounds, and three blocks in the Creighton Bluejays’ 99-86 victory over UTRGV.
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Official reason ref awarded farcical pen to Club Brugge after Mings blunder – but Arsenal got away with same error
TYRONE MINGS gave away an unbelievable penalty in Aston Villa’s Champions League clash with Club Brugge tonight.
The Villa centre-back was punished for a lapse in concentration that saw him reach down and pick up the ball in his own box.
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Mings, 31, had the ball passed to him inside the area by goalkeeper Emi Martinez at a goal kick.
But the former England defender thought that Martinez was kicking him the ball for him to take the restart, prompting a VAR check for handball.
The referee had no choice but to award the penalty, which was dispatched by Hans Vanaken.
It was a hammer blow to Villa with the goal being the difference between the two teams and the match ending 1-0.
And Mings’ Champions League debut was cut short after his calamitous error.
The towering defender was hooked by manager Unai Emery just over ten minutes later.
To make matters worse, Mings now becomes the first English player in history to give away a penalty on their debut in the competition.
Unbelievably, Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhaes got away with the exact same error as Mings in last season’s Champions League.
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The Gunners’ star leant down to pick up a pass from David Raya against Bayern Munich, but was not called up on his moment of madness despite pleas from the Bayern players.
The decision to punish Mings comes as the ball is already considered as in-play when Martinez plays him the pass – meaning the referee has to give a penalty for handball.
The referee for Arsenal’s clash last season was lambasted by then-Bayern boss Thomas Tuchel for his decision not to strictly follow the rules.
The now-England manager, said: “I think the referee did not have the courage to give a deserved penalty today in a bit of a crazy and awkward situation.
“He admitted on the pitch that he saw the situation and that quarter-final is not enough for him to give a penalty, for a kid’s mistake. He admitted he saw the mistake the player made.
“It was a goal kick, the goalkeeper passed to a central defender and one touched the ball with the hand because he thought it was not in game but it was in game and the referee admitted it was in game and was handball. Very frustrating.”
Nicolas Kuhn scores a “sensational” curling strike from outside the box to bring Celtic level in their matchday four tie against RB Leipzig at Celtic Park.
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