John Higgins has fired back at Ronnie O’Sullivan after he was criticised by the Rocket, who urged him to be more ‘aggressive’ in order to turn his form around. Higgins has not won any ranking titles for nearly three years and was knocked out of the Scottish Open semi-finals by Noppon Saengkham last week.
Higgins has also reached a string of big finals since winning his last title but has been unable to get over the line in any of them. He was recently singled out for criticism by O’Sullivan, who believes that his rival needs to ‘push the boundaries’ as he bids to rediscover his best form.
“I think he [John] has got to push the boundaries a bit more,” said O’Sullivan. “He is such a good player that if he came out and played with that aggressiveness, I think he would scare people more. No one likes playing someone that is coming at you at 100mph constantly.
“When someone backs off a bit you can get comfortable in the match and John has got to stop letting people feel comfortable against him. When you get to the business end of tournaments, average is not going to do it.”
In response, Higgins clapped back at O’Sullivan as he defended himself by pointing to his record as one of snooker’s biggest stars over the last three decades.
“If he [O’Sullivan] is not around and I am still playing to this level and I am 48, people would be saying it’s a remarkable achievement,” said the 48-year-old. “But you’re up against Ronnie and in the same age group, a one-off. It’s difficult but I still feel that I am doing OK for who I am, so I am happy.
“I know, it’s just that we’re in the era that he’s playing in and I am getting judged on that. Over the years, obviously I’ve been blessed with some ability, but I feel as if I’m a working man at the game. There are other people who can make it look incredibly easy, and are more talented, so I’ve never let my mind run away from me thinking it’s an easy game or getting ahead of myself.”
Higgins went on to insist that he feels better than ever before in spite of his title drought, which stretches back to his victory over O’Sullivan in the Players Championship final in 2021.
“I’ve always known how difficult this game is and have always had to give my all,” he added. I think it’s technical, knowing the game. Maybe because you’re not under as much pressure trying to prove things to people.
“Listen, the pressure gets to you and as you get older it probably gets to you more. But for me I’m a better player than I’ve ever been, that’s how I see it.”
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