Snooker:Northern Ireland's Mark Allen took full advantage of an out-of-form John Higgins to record a 6-3 win over the current world champion in their first round Masters encounter at the Wembley Arena.
The 34-year-old Scot, who is also provisional world number one and won the Masters title in 1999 and 2006, slipped 3-1 behind at the mid-session interval in the best-of-11 contest.
Allen made numerous errors of his own but Higgins made even more as the Antrim cue-man held on for the 6-3 win.
The 23-year-old will now face Mark Selby, who beat China’s Ding Junhui 6-1.
Higgins took the opening frame in an intriguing tactical battle, taking the initiative after Allen endured a run of four successive misses.
Allen pulled back in the second frame, taking advantage of indifferent form from his opponent.
The left hander’s positional play was far from perfect, but Higgins failed to capitalise and Allen was accomplished enough to forge further ahead with victory in the third frame.
Higgins responded in the fourth and appeared set to be levelling the match, but fouled, touching a red with his cue as he was lining up a black.
Allen took full advantage to take a two-frame advantage at the mid-session interval.
Higgins urgently needed to wrest the initiative from his young opponent in the fifth frame and duly made his highest break of the contest, 39.
Despite the miss he won a tactical battle on the pink to narrow the deficit.
World number 11 Allen made a break of 51 in the sixth frame and it was enough to hold on, but again Higgins hit back to narrow the deficit at 4-3.
The see-saw battle continued, with Allen taking the eighth frame and he built to 50 without response in the ninth before clinching the match as Higgins’ terrible display continued.
Allen conceded his performance was poor and he was surprised Higgins was even worse.
“It wasn’t very good,” said Allen afterwards. “I missed too many balls.
“It was an unusual John Higgins out there today. Everyone has their off days, it’s just unexpected.”
-PA