John Higgins relishing potential World Championship clash with Ronnie O’Sullivan

John Higgins is relishing the possibility of a seventh Crucible showdown with Ronnie O’Sullivan after brushing off Ali Carter to reach the second round of the World Snooker Championship in Sheffield.

The decorated ‘Class of ’92’ duo will meet again at the famous venue from Saturday night provided O’Sullivan negotiates his first-round match against Chinese debutant He Guoqiang, which is set to get under way on Tuesday.

Four-time winner Higgins emerged unscathed from an attritional clash with former finalist Carter, hauling back a 5-4 overnight deficit to win 10-7 and seal his place in the last 16 for the 28th time in his illustrious career.

Higgins said: “It would be a great occasion. It might possibly be the last time we would play each other out there, so it would be a match to savour.

“We’ve been there for so many years and I would love to play him out there again. You’re playing one of the greatest ever so it would be a great match if he comes through and we play over three sessions.”

O’Sullivan, 50, is well aware of the dangers posed by the 25-year-old from Hunan province, who has beaten him in two of their three previous career meetings, including a 4-2 loss in the first round of the English Open in 2024.

He, who describes the seven-time champion as his “idol”, is a former world under-18 champion who came through Q School to reach the main tour in 2023. He scored a hugely impressive 10-5 win over Jack Lisowski in the final qualifying round.

Higgins shrugged off the shock of losing the final five frames of Sunday’s opening session, clawing into a 7-6 lead before the pivotal moment in the 14th frame when Carter missed a rash red allowing the veteran Scot to forge back two ahead.

As Carter’s frustrations visibly grew, Higgins pulled further clear with a cool half-century and Carter’s gutsy response in the next frame proved irrelevant as Higgins forced his way over the line, celebrating his safe passage with a fist pump.

Earlier, former world number one Ding Junhui secured a last-16 showdown with Chinese compatriot and reigning world champion Zhao Xintong by completing a 10-5 victory over David Gilbert.

The Englishman won three of the first four frames to eat into a 7-2 overnight deficit, aided by Ding misjudging a plant that allowed him to pinch the 13th frame by a point.

But Ding – who on Sunday became the eighth player to record a century of centuries at the World Championship – replied with breaks of 106 and 61 to close out victory.

“I still have a bit of pressure and between the matches I try to put myself on the shots and concentrate on each one,” Ding told the BBC. “It looks like it’s working good, but I’m not quite enjoying it.”

Another fast-rising Chinese star, Wu Yize, made short work of compatriot Lei Peifan as he hit six half-centuries or better to establish an 8-1 overnight lead. Wu, who will return to finish the job on Tuesday, is a potential second-round opponent for Mark Selby.