Snooker: Shaun must come back from the dead

Published on Monday 4 May 2009 09:57

SHAUN MURPHY was setting out to rewrite snooker's record books today after allowing Scotland's John Higgins to move within sight of Crucible glory.

Higgins was taking a lead of 11-5 into this afternoon's third session of the Betfred.com World Championship final, after winning seven out of eight frames last night. No player has ever come back to win from 11-5 down in a Crucible final. However, the overnight scoreline set up the possibility of a rare afternoon finish.

Although Higgins had taken the first three frames of the match, the way Murphy responded with a 109 to make it 3-3, and then to make it 4-4, did not seem to suggest the Scot would dominate so much later on.

But Higgins needs just another seven frames to clinch the third world title of his career, after previous triumphs in 1998 and 2007. The Scot made two brilliant breaks of 128 in the 14th and 16th frames, plus a run of 95 in frame 12.

Murphy may take some small consolation from the fact Higgins led 13-3 against Mark Allen in the semi-finals and was pegged back to 15-12 at one stage.

However, the Wishaw cueman is not the sort to lose his focus in a final of such magnitude, so it requires an exceptional performance by the Englishman to salvage his title chance.

Although Higgins may have another glorious Sheffield night ahead of him, he is not convinced the World Championship should stay in South Yorkshire on a long-term basis. An agreement between World Snooker and Sheffield City Council to keep the tournament at the Crucible until 2014 has been brokered, but Higgins suggests taking it to mainland Europe afterwards. The 33-year-old Scot co-promotes the World Series of Snooker, the body which runs several non-ranking tournaments overseas. He said: "We're taking (snooker) to countries where ten years ago they wouldn't really have been interested.

"It's the European countries that are really up for the game of snooker, whereas in Britain just now we've maybe been here too much and it's maybe stagnated a little bit in the last few years.

"Hopefully we can be going to different countries and telling them they could have a chance in five years' time to hold the World Championship, and let these different countries get their infrastructures ready so when the current deal finishes in 2014 they can put in a bid.

"If we have got to leave it would have to be a good offer."