Some of the snooker witnessed in Milton Keynes this week has been nothing short of spectacular, and a good chunk of it has been played by John Higgins.
The veteran rattled off three centuries in the opening three frames of his 6-0 demolition of Jordan Brown on Wednesday, before he confined Mark Selby to long periods in his chair and only seven points when they met in the last eight on Friday.
Higgins hinted at this resurgence when reaching the semi-finals of the English Open late last year, but he has taken giant steps forwards since Christmas, reaching the final of the Masters and then playing supremely well so far this week.
Key to his improvement has been a concerted effort to set himself up better on his approach to the table before taking a much closer position to the cue ball when down on the shot.
Higgins comfortably leads the head-to-record between this pair (7-2) and if he makes the same type of blistering start that he produced against Brown and Selby earlier in the week, he could well run away with another match.
The biggest conundrum to come from Ronnie O’Sullivan's demolition of Jack Lisowski on Thursday night is whether to liken his performance to a Ferrari – its engine purring in the way only a supercar can – or a prima ballerina gliding elegantly across the stage, seemingly unaware of the transfixed audience watching on in awe.
Either way, whether it's supercars or the ballet that floats your boat, O’Sullivan was simply magnificent in a display every bit as good as anything he has produced in the last couple of seasons and one that justifies prices of even-money for him to go on and win a third Players Championship title in four years. O'Sullivan didn’t qualify for the event in 2020.
On Friday evening, he will face Barry Hawkins; another seasoned-campaigner with whom he has enjoyed some great matches over the years. As ever, O’Sullivan holds a healthy advantage in the head-to-head record (14-3), but Hawkins has recovered well from a quiet spell last term to find some form again this season and he beat The Rocket 3-1 at the Championship League earlier this month.
Hawkins was one of my Five players to Follow at the start of the season, so I’m pleased to see him playing well again and but for a special comeback from Judd Trump in the semi-finals of the German Masters, he might well be a ranking-title winner again.
Key to Hawkins’ upturn in fortunes has been his renewed efforts on the practice table, which have seen him score much more heavily than in the last couple of years and it is noticeable that he is already up to 27 centuries this season, compared to 32 in the whole of the previous campaign.
Hawkins didn’t manage a ton in his 6-2 defeat of Stuart Bingham on Wednesday, but this encounter promises to be a much more open game than that one, while his earlier victory over of Zhou Yuelong saw him fire in breaks of 143 and 109.
O’Sullivan’s own break-building has remained typically savage and while he can sometimes be indifferent when chasing centuries, he managed two against Lisowski – and a break of 95 – having made one against Ding to go with a similar near-miss, and three in his Welsh Open defeat to Jordan Brown on Sunday.
In this best-of-11 frames match, Hawkins will know he has to score in order to have any chance of beating O’Sullivan, while these elite-field events have historically brought out in the best in The Rocket. As such, I’d expect a high-quality contest between two heavy scorers who are evidently in good form at present.
Backing centuries did us a good turn on Thursday and with more of the same in the offing, I’m keen to go in again with the 2/1 on offer from Sky Bet for THREE OF MORE MATCH CENTURIES worth an interest. If Hawkins brings his A-game to the party, four or more Match Centuries could be in play, too, and 11/2 (Sky Bet) certainly dangles the carrot.
Preview posted at 1230 GMT
We are committed in our support of responsible gambling. Recommended bets are advised to over-18s and we strongly encourage readers to wager only what they can afford to lose.
If you are concerned about your gambling, please call the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133, or visit .
Further support and information can be found at and .