On the evening of February 16, Beijing time, the 2024 Snooker Welsh Open ushered in the quarterfinals, Mark Allen and Higgins took the lead, and in the end, the veteran Higgins defeated his old opponent Mark Allen 5-2 and took the lead in advancing to the semifinals.
Mark Allen and Higgins are old rivals in the snooker arena, and this match is the 26th meeting between the two sides. In the previous 25 games, Mark Allen had the upper hand with 14 wins and 11 losses. The last time the two met was in the semi-finals of the Champions League last year, when Mark Allen won 6-2 to advance to the final and eventually beat Judd Trump to win the title strongly. Allen, who has lost weight this season, is in good shape, and this tournament is also in the limelight, defeating three Chinese players in a row, in addition to the narrow victory in the postponed qualifying round, only 1 game was lost in the last 3 games, and two clean sheets advanced to the top 8, and Higgins's opponents in the first 3 rounds were not too strong, and almost overturned in the game against Selt!
After the start of the game, Higgins took the lead and hit a 50+ shot to take a 2-0 lead, and Allen stubbornly chased after it, winning two games in a row to tie the score, 2-2. Higgins then went two more games to take a 4-2 lead. In the crucial 7th game, the two sides entered a protracted tug-of-war, and after 30 minutes of fierce competition, the stable Higgins killed the game with multiple controls on the game, and finally eliminated Mark Allen 5-2 and advanced to the semifinals. In the whole game, Higgins played one shot over 100 and four shots of 50+, while Allen only played one shot of 50+, and it is not difficult to see from the data that Higgins won as a matter of course.
In this game, both sides played at a high level, especially Higgins, who repeatedly staged textbook ball-trapping skills, showing good defensive skills and control, although the score was slightly different, it was a classic battle. Allen, who is determined to win the championship, meets Higgins, who is back in form, although he is unwilling, but he is also convinced.
Higgins' victory will see the winner of Gary Wilson and McGill in the semi-finals, and if he can progress to the final, he could be aiming for a career 32nd title. Higgins, who is over half a hundred years old, has not won any qualifying tournaments for three years since winning the 2021 Players Championship. This time, can the wizard be like Rocket O'Sullivan, rejuvenate and win the championship again? Let's wait and see!