JOHN Higgins remains on course for a place in the Betfred.com World Championship final but Mark Allen denied him a day off after a gutsy fightback last night.
Allen had trailed 13-3 after the opening two sessions of their semi-final, and Higgins needed just four of eight frames in the evening session to allow himself a leisurely afternoon today.
But the pair will be back today to play to a finish after
Allen won six frames to cut Higgins' lead to 15-9. The 33-year-old Scot will require just two more for victory. Even if Allen does go out it will be a dignified exit rather than the three-session thrashing which had looked likely. Higgins would have relished the chance of a quiet day after taking the long road on his journey through the draw.
He came back from the brink of defeat to clinch thrilling 13-12 victories over Jamie Cope and Mark Selby to set up his clash with Allen, the man who dumped Ronnie O'Sullivan out in the second round. And a day at the practice table would have been an ideal way to prepare for a clash against Shaun Murphy or Neil Robertson, the pair contesting the other semi-final. After two sessions, Murphy leads 9-7.
Left-hander Allen, 23, has been hoping to become Northern Ireland's first champion since Dennis Taylor landed his late-night success against Steve Davis in 1985. That remains unlikely to happen this year, but Allen has at least given himself a chance, and should he win the first couple of frames today Higgins could have problems.
With the pressure, Allen made breaks of 63, 56 and 58 before pinching the final three scrappy frames of the evening. Higgins made the two highest breaks of the session, 85 and 93, to win his two frames, as the exertions of his matches against Cope and Selby looked to be taking a toll.
Murphy looked set to take a resounding lead over Robertson into their two remaining sessions, however his Australian opponent won the final two frames of their second session to remain in touch. Murphy appeared certain to stretch 10-5 clear when he went 57-0 in front in the 15th frame, but he missed a tricky red and Robertson seized on an unexpected chance to make a clearance of 70. Robertson also secured the final frame of the session after Murphy blundered by attempting a tricky plant.
Murphy is determined to remain focused on his mission to reach the final, and insists he will not be distracted by any adverse crowd reaction. The 26-year-old was a popular champion in Sheffield in 2005, when as a resident of nearby Rotherham he could count on strong local support. He called on the loudest shouters in his adopted home town to cheer him all the way to his final victory over Matthew Stevens.
But since the breakdown of his marriage last year, and his move to Sale, the Crucible crowd's response to Murphy has cooled. It has remained largely respectful, however booing was clearly audible when he walked out for his second-round match against Marco Fu.
"I walked out and I heard those people, whoever they were, I don't know who they were and I don't know how many of them there were," he said. "I had a very simple decision to make. I could either let it inspire me or I could have sat in my chair, had a bit of a cry and asked them to leave, and start again and let them achieve what they wanted to achieve. But I was not prepared to do that because it means too much.
"Anyone who thinks coming and booing me is going to knock me off my course doesn't know me at all."
