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Comeback king Higgins stuns Selby for Tour Championship crown

Jonathan Davies in Tour Championship

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John Higgins v Mark Selby live stream: Tour Championship 2025 final preview

Higgins recovered from 8-5 down to stun Selby in Manchester (Sportimage Ltd/Alamy Live News)

John Higgins produced a trademark fightback from 8-5 down for a dramatic 10-8 victory over Mark Selby in a thrilling Tour Championship final.

The Wizard lost seven successive frames from 5-1 up, but then reeled off the last five at Manchester Central to claim his second ranking title in as many months, having also triumphed at the World Open five weeks ago.

It was the 33rd ranking silverware of Higgins’ glittering career, while he pocketed the top prize of ยฃ150,000.

The Scotsman subsequently climbs above Selby to third in the world rankings, and revelled in his success at the elite 12-man event.

“It is my best ever win,” Higgins told ITV Sport. “I was playing an unbelievable champion and he was looking like he was not going to miss, he was tying me up in knots.

“To do that against Mark gives me incredible belief that I can still mix it with the best players.”

This was the players’ second ranking final meeting of the season, with Selby having prevailed 10-5 in their British Open showpiece six months earlier.

The Jester responded to losing the opening frame with a superb 135 total clearance, but scored just 26 points in the next four as breaks of 102 (twice) and 68 saw Higgins roar into a 5-1 lead.

Although guaranteed to trail heading into the evening session, Selby concluded the afternoon in majestic fashion with back-to-back centuries of 112 and 136 reducing the deficit to 5-3.

Also the winner of this season’s Welsh Open and Championship League invitational event, the Leicester cueist had demonstrated his ability to gather momentum earlier in the week; reeling off nine straight frames in his 10-1 rout of Neil Robertson, and five on the spin to defeat Ding Junhui 10-2 in the semi-finals.

And he picked up from where he left off upon the resumption, with runs of 68, 55, 77 and 119 making it seven frames on the spin, and putting him in command at 8-5.

However, Higgins stopped the rot with a timely 110, while he also had a run of 67 on the way to levelling at 8-8.

Selby had scored just 18 points in those three frames, and he would not score another, with an 80 moving the Scotsman to within a frame of victory.

Higgins had previously been in this position in the Tour Championship showpiece, notoriously surrendering a 9-4 advantage against Neil Robertson three years ago.

But, on this occasion, he grew stronger as the winning line drew closer, with a marvellous 132 total clearance sealing an emotional victory.

“I was just dipping a little bit tonight, and he was staying at the same level, which he always does,” Higgins added. “I was thinking: ‘I’ve just got no answer here’. But it managed to turn around, I don’t know how.

“I just didn’t feel any nerves at the end there. It was incredible, compared to over the years when I’ve been like a rabbit in the headlights. Tonight, I just felt so under control.

“I was just trying to stay positive [at 8-5 down]. [The World Open win] gave me a gee up. That was the reason why I did come back [tonight]. I’m really proud.”