Masters snooker 2021 – John Higgins thrilled to beat Ronnie O’Sullivan; technique change paying off

John Higgins was “over the moon” with his win over Ronnie O’Sullivan in the quarter finals of the Masters – and revealed that some intense work on his technique is starting to pay off.

The four-time world champion headed into his quarter-final at the Marshall Arena as a heavy underdog after O’Sullivan’s display against Ding Junhui in the first round, but he knocked in three centuries – including a tournament-high 145 – on his way to a 6-3 win.

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He told Eurosport after the match that he could not play any better, which may be a small crumb of comfort to semi-final opponent David Gilbert.

“Brilliant,” was his reaction to Eurosport. “I can’t play any better than that. I thought it was a great match.”

‘I can’t play any better than that’ – Higgins thrilled to beat O’Sullivan

Higgins got a lot of table time last week during the Championship League, and he felt that – along with some tweaks to his technique – was evident against O’Sullivan.

“I am the underdog against Ronnie without doubt,” he said. “But coming down to the Championship League was important to get some matches.

But I have been doing something different with my technique. Watching Mark Selby, I am trying to give myself a trigger. I am just trying to get close to the white ball.

“I have heard people say I’m too far away from the white ball and at the point of contact I am too far away and losing power.

“So I’m trying to get closer with my bridge hand and my tip and it’s giving me a trigger like a golfer, and it’s paying off.”

Higgins impressed at the Championship League, where he won four of his six league matches before beating Tom Ford in the Table 1 play-off and crushing Kyren Wilson 3-0 in the group final.

But he says that this week – against other top-ranked players – will be the true test of his form.

“I am delighted with the way I played,” he said. “I am over the moon. You can do it in a few matches, but you want to do it against the best as that is how you judge yourself.”

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