John Higgins came from 7-2 down to beat Judd Trump 10-9 in a sensational Shanghai Masters final – and made a 147.

A phenomenal match, a great advert for snooker, featured a maximum break from Higgins plus three more centuries and 12 other breaks over 50, as well as gripping drama which thrilled the Chinese fans until the last moment.

Higgins looked down and out in the first session despite his superb 147, but made a typical fight-back in the evening and clinched victory with a trademark clearance in the deciding frame.

After dominating the sport for the second half of the 2010/11 season and winning his fourth world title, Higgins had a miserable 2011/12 campaign by his standards and failed to reach a ranking final.

But the 37-year-old has come into the current campaign with fresh impetus and a new cue, and showed yesterday that he is still the toughest match-player in the business.

Victory is worth £75,000 plus £12,000 for the maximum break and gives him his 25th ranking title and first in China since 1999.

Higgins is now just three behind Steve Davis’s tally of 28 ranking wins, though still well behind Stephen Hendry on 36.

“To beat Judd from 7-2 down is unbelievable, I can’t explain how it feels because I’m shell-shocked,” said Higgins.

“In the first session he steam-rollered me, but I still felt confident that if I came back tonight and played my best I would have a small chance.To beat Judd when he was playing that well must be one of my best wins ever.

“I could have won 10-8 but I started feeling some pressure and played a bad shot from brown to blue, that was just nerves. In the last frame I decided to go for the long red full-blooded and luckily it went in. To clear up was a great feeling.”