When Shaun Murphy trudged off the Crucible floor for the last interval of his World Snooker Championship semi-final, trailing 15-13, his dreams of a second world title were on the brink of collapse. Just two frames away from defeat, against the grittiest of opponents in 50-year-old, four-time world champion John Higgins, Murphy required something special.
And that’s exactly what he delivered. A sublime break of 105, his third century of the session, narrowed the gap to one before an equally clinical break of 78 levelled the match once more. From 13-11 down overnight, he had already fought back to 13-13 with back-to-back tons in the blink of an eye and now he had eradicated a 15-13 deficit to turn a four-session match into a best-of-three shootout for a place in the world final.
Both men had chances in frame 31 but it was Murphy who took the last of them to move within one of victory before a nervy final frame saw Higgins miss a black off the spot when poised to force a decider and, although it took the younger man two attempts, he got over the line 17-15. In the biggest moment, he stood up tall.
“The way Shaun hit the ball in that last session – you cannot hit it better than that,” said a gracious, but shell-shocked, Higgins afterwards. “It was incredible, it really was. He just hits it like God.”
When the comparison to a deity was put to Murphy in his post-match press conference, the 43-year-old was understandably chuffed. “I’ll take that,” he chuckled. “I don’t like to give myself too much praise, but I’m gonna have that one.”
Now Murphy turns his attention to an even greater hurdle – finally lifting a second world title. When he won his first, as a fresh-faced 22-year-old way back in 2005, he freely admits he expected plenty more to follow. Twenty-one years later, the closest he has come is three defeats in finals – to Higgins in 2009, to Stuart Bingham in 2015 and to Mark Selby in 2021.
There are ghosts to be laid to rest. Has he forgotten how to win snooker’s biggest match? We’ll find out over the next two days but one thing is for sure, Murphy is desperate to join an elite club.
“There is a totally different reverence given to multi-world champions throughout the tour, amongst the players,” he explained. “They’re seen in a totally different light.
“I saw on a stat recently that there’s actually not as many of them as I thought there were [only six men have won multiple titles at the Crucible], so it’s quite a small club within a club.
“There is a slightly different nod given to the guys that have won it twice or more. So, it would be great to join the club.”
With defeat in the semi-finals, Higgins was denied history. A ninth world final appearance would have matched Scottish icon Stephen Hendry for the most in Crucible history and, at barely more than a fortnight short of his 51st birthday, he would have become the oldest man to play in snooker’s showpiece.
Going a step further, a fifth world title would have moved him one clear of Mark Selby for lone fourth place in the all-time list, and just one behind king of the 1980s Steve Davis. It would have been fitting reward for a consensus all-time top five and probable all-time top three snooker player. You can’t help but wonder how many more chances there will be.
“John Higgins… What a player and what a man,” effused Murphy. “The harder it gets on the table, the tougher he gets and the better he plays.
“He’s such a competitor. If I’m half the player he is when I’m in my 50s, I’ll be very proud.”
Higgins may have been the more popular choice to reach the final but sport is rarely decided on emotion. Murphy outscored his opponent – making five centuries to Higgins’ one – and will now have a shot at his own slice of history instead.
“There’s no point me pretending that being in the final isn’t going to mean absolutely everything,” added Murphy. “When I walk out there tomorrow, there’s no point pretending that I’m not going to be very nervous over the next two days.
“It’s going to be very very difficult to get that second win and it would mean so much more now, than it meant 21 years ago. I was so clueless as a 22-year-old. I think that was in my favour, I didn’t really understand it but now I do understand it, it would mean even more.”
The ghosts of final defeats past might finally be exorcised.
