Mark Selby and John Higgins will continue their bids to claim a maiden Tour Championship title when they compete in the 2025 final on Sunday in Manchester.
The pair of four-time world champions emerged from their semi-final ties on Friday and Saturday to move to within one hurdle of glory.
Higgins prevailed in the opening last-four contest courtesy of a 10-7 triumph over Barry Hawkins in which he compiled a hat-trick of century breaks.
The 49 year-old’s confidence has been transformed since landing an overdue 32nd ranking trophy at the World Open a handful of weeks ago.
Higgins now has the opportunity to put to bed one of the most painful results of his career.
At the 2022 Tour Championship, the Wizard of Wishaw led Neil Robertson 9-4 but proceeded to lose the concluding six frames to be denied the silverware by the Aussie.
Against Selby, Higgins comes up against a formidable foe who he has shared numerous crunch battles with over the years.
They have twice clashed in World Championship finals at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, sharing one triumph apiece.
Selby has also beaten Higgins in two other title-deciding encounters, most recently in this season’s British Open where he orchestrated a 10-5 victory.
The 41 year-old produced a dominant display to oust Ding Junhui in the second semi-final match at the Tour Championship on Saturday.
Selby won the opening two frames with a couple of frame-winning runs and never looked back, adding a brace of centuries in a one-sided 10-2 rout.
Much of the focus during the 2024/25 snooker season has been on the performances of Kyren Wilson and Judd Trump.
But Selby is one win away from matching Wilson’s haul of four trophies from this term, and he is very much deserving of his current ranking as the world number three.
Both Selby and Higgins would love to continue their preparations for the big one later this month with more silverware.
No player has managed to do the Tour Championship and World Championship double at the end of a campaign.
Selby, though, was the last player to win the last two ranking events of any season – doing so with the China Open and the World Championship in 2017.
The last time the Jester crossed paths with Higgins was as recently as the Welsh Open in February when he emerged with a deciding-frame win.
Higgins suffers from an inferior head-to-head record overall, but he is looking more and more like the dogged competitor of old ever since his return to the winner’s enclosure in Yushan.
Any showdown between Selby and Higgins has the makings of being a war of attrition on the baize.
Following a week that has produced so many unusual lopsided scorelines, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the most dramatic duel saved for last.
The 2025 Tour Championship final takes place on Sunday, April 6th at 1pm and 7pm UTC+1.
2025 Tour Championship Draw
Times in UTC+1
Round of 12 (bo19)
Shaun Murphy 1-10 Barry Hawkins
Xiao Guodong 10-8 Wu Yize
Mark Selby 10-6 Si Jiahui
Mark Williams 3-10 Ding Junhui
Quarter-Finals (bo19)
Judd Trump 5-10 Barry Hawkins
John Higgins 10-3 Xiao Guodong
Neil Robertson 1-10 Mark Selby
Kyren Wilson 5-10 Ding Junhui
Semi-Finals (bo19)
Barry Hawkins 7-10 John Higgins
Mark Selby 10-2 Ding Junhui
Final (bo19)
John Higgins vs Mark Selby
(Sunday at 1pm and 7pm)
Click here for updated scores and results
(snooker.org)
Featured photos credit: WST
John Higgins mark I Vs John Higgins mark II. Two four time world champions, two all time top competitive match play kings. One’s a bit older and shorter, the others a bit younger and rather taller.
I’m looking forward to this final. It may be a precursor to the latter rounds of the worlds in a few weeks as both men’s games are suited that that tournament and both men’s seasons are coming to the boil at the perfect time. Like race horses prepped for the Grand National for several months.
Selby appearing in a 37th ranking final and Higgins his 58th, which sees him move above Stephen Hendry into second on the all-time list, trailing Ronnie O’Sullivan by six.
22-18 to Selby across all matches but 16-8 in proper contest. Higgins hasn’t beaten Selby in a big match since the much remembered 2021 Player’s Championship qùarter-final, where Leicester’s finest scored just seven points in a 6-0 loss.
They first met in 2005, Higgins defeating Selby on his Crucible debut. They met four times in five years at the World Championship between 2005 and 2009.
I’m going Selby 10-8.