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John Higgins, a professional player since the last 25 years and a four-time world champion, won the Indian Open Ranking Tournament 2017 by comfortably outplaying Anthony McGill 5-1. This win gave Higgins his 29th ranking title.
The final was played in a best of nine frames format to produce a more exciting contest. Higgins came into the match beating Xu Si of China without having to break much sweat; he won 4-2 in the morning session. On the other hand, McGill had a very tough match with Mark King, where he came from 3-2 down before eventually winning 4-3.
Higgins and McGill, who are both from Scotland, started the final match cautiously. But it was Higgins who drew first blood and pocketed the first points of the match. He then started playing beautifully and managed to finish the first frame on 70-2.
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The match consisted of several tactical battles, with Higgins having a slight edge due to his experience. He won the second frame after a mistake on the green by McGill.
McGill won the third frame 78-28 which boosted his confidence and also made a statement to Higgins that he was no pushover. But Higgins answered that with a frame-clinching break of 71 in the 4th frame.
The 5th frame saw plenty of nervous moments and missed shots. Higgins found his way eventually though, and won the frame 71-35.
The next frame was a walk in the park for Higgins as he won 104-1, thereby winning the tournament.
Higgins had a forgetful China Open in August, but here in India he found his touch and luck. With this win he pocketed £50,000, while the runner up McGill pocketed £25,000. The win helped Higgins reach the World No. 2 rank. He also moved clear of Steve Davies and Ronnie O'Sullivan in the number of ranking titles won.
Next up for the players is the Yushan World open at China where most of the top snooker stars will be participating.
The 4th Indian Open thus conlcluded on a high note. Here's wishing that next year's tournament brings even more stars and enthralling match-ups for the fans to savour.
