Snooker: Higgins wins scrappy opener

Champion knows he must up his game as he seeks to avenge defeat by Williams

(GETTY IMAGES)

World champion John Higgins admits he must cut out the mistakes when he faces Mark Williams in the second round of the Sanyuan Foods China Open after a scrappy win against Fergal O'Brien.

The Scot beat O'Brien 5-3 this afternoon to set up a showdown with Williams after the Welshman beat England's Jamie Cope 5-3.

Higgins did not have things all his own way in Beijing. Having produced 74 and 50 to go 3-1 up, O'Brien clawed one back and made a fight of it until Higgins finally settled matters with a 74 in the eighth frame.

"I'm very happy to win but there were lots if mistakes from the two of us," Higgins told worldsnooker.com.

"If I play like that against Mark I'll lose. The last time I played him here was in the final four years ago and I lost 10-9, so I owe him revenge.

"There's always pressure on your first round game so hopefully I'll have more confidence in my next match."

Home favourite Ding Junhui survived a scare to beat Gerard Greene 5-3 and move into the last 16. The 22-year-old from Wuxi will meet Mark Selby or Rod Lawler after eventually making two centuries and overcoming the England-born Northern Irishman.

Ding lost the opening frame before bouncing back to claim the next four, and though he allowed Greene back in to make it 4-2, an impressive 107 saw him through.

"I felt really bad and didn't play well, especially from 4-1 to 4-3," he told worldsnooker.com. "But in the last frame I focused on every strike and just concentrated on the balls."

Mark Allen will now face Stephen Maguire, who beat Barry Hawkins 5-3, after his 5-1 win against Graeme Dott, while Ryan Day's 5-1 win over Robert Milkins saw him advance to a showdown with Stephen Hendry or Andrew Higginson.

Earlier, Neil Robertson saw off Mike Dunn 5-2 to book a meeting with either the defending champion Peter Ebdon or Judd Trump. Marco Fu saw off the little-known Belgian Bjorn Haneveer 5-2 and will face Shaun Murphy or Nigel Bond.