John Higgins makes 147 break at World Snooker Championship

It is the 10th 147 the Scot has made in his career but his first at the sport’s most famous venue

John Higgins made the first maximum break at the Crucible since 2012 on Thursday (Eurosport)

John Higgins etched his name deeper into Crucible folklore after becoming just the seventh player to strike a maximum 147 break at the World Snooker Championship.

Not since the great Stephen Hendry achieved the feat back in 2012 had a player compiled a maximum but four-time world champion Higgins ended the eight-year wait in style, as a brilliant visit against Kurt Maflin secured the tenth 147 of his career.

Cliff Thorburn was the first to accomplish the feat in 1983 while Jimmy White, Ronnie O’Sullivan, Mark Williams, Ali Carter and Hendry followed suit over the next 29 years and it was Higgins who became the latest snooker immortal behind closed doors.

The table looked promising from the very beginning, as the world No.5 expertly bridged over the pack of reds to rack up his first point in the bottom right pocket.

And from there he found that brilliant fluency that’s seen him romp to 30 ranking event titles, potting red, black, red, black in mesmerising fashion to cue anticipation of the unthinkable.

Tom Ford, Stuart Bingham and Maflin himself came close to achieving the feat in their first round matches but it was Higgins who looked the best-placed to go all the way, with the reds favourably distributed at the bottom end of the table.

A brilliant pot into the middle pocket on the penultimate red paved the way and once Higgins got onto the colours, there was no looking back.

He held his nerve with aplomb to add his name to a glittering roll call of former players, his tenth maximum of his career and his first at the Crucible to further his status as a World Championship great.

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