Emotional Higgins wins world title

An emotional John Higgins claimed his fourth World Championship title last night as the most harrowing 12 months of his life ended in triumph.

Judd Trump’s exhilarating run in Sheffield ended in defeat at the hands of a Crucible master as Higgins prevailed 18-15.

Higgins broke down in tears at mention of his late father, the man who guided his career and died in February, but savoured his victory.

He said: “It’s been great. It’s an unbelievable moment.”

“John was the better player on the day,” Trump said, although Higgins immediately contradicted him.

“We’ve got a new sensation in the game,” Higgins said.

At one stage Trump, the sensation of the tournament if not its champion, led 12-9. However as he attempted to stretch four frames clear the 21-year-old missed a difficult blue, and that proved a turning point.

A year to the day ago, Higgins was the subject of frame-fixing allegations which overshadowed the final. He was charged by the snooker authorities, but battled to clear his name and largely succeeded. The fixing charges were dropped and a six-month ban for minor offences around betting kept him sidelined only until November.

A triumph at the UK Championship in December was followed by the Welsh Open title in February, just days after the death of his father, John snr.

Higgins dearly wanted to win the world title for his father, and after his semi-final win over Mark Williams he pointed to the heavens to show what reaching another final meant.

Having played poorly yesterday and finished just 10-7 behind, the Scot produced a performance befitting his status as a great of the game to firstly draw level and then fend off Trump who refused to give up.

Only Steve Davis, Stephen Hendry and Ray Reardon have won more world titles in the modern era than Higgins.