Despite all the talk of Chinese players taking over, the famous “Class of ’92” is proving they’re not done yet. On the eighth day of the World Snooker Championship at the Crucible, Ronnie O’Sullivan, Mark Williams, and John Higgins showed their enduring class.
While this year’s tournament has seen its fair share of upsets, these three legends remain as tough as ever. Now in their late forties and early fifties, the trio who have a combined 14 world titles look capable of adding another to their tally by next Monday.
Higgins had to resume his intense last-16 match against Xiao Guodong late Saturday, leading 12-11 when their morning session ran out of time. Xiao forced a final-frame decider, but Higgins held firm to win 13-12, earning a quarter-final clash with Williams.
Ranked world No. 3 after an excellent season that included winning the Tour Championship, Higgins reflected: “Playing at the Crucible is something special — the pressure, the crowd, you can’t recreate it anywhere else. Winning some big events recently gave me belief. Am I a believer again? Absolutely.”
On facing Williams, Higgins added, “It’s amazing we’re still doing this and of course, you add Ronnie too. Three very special players.”
Williams advanced with a 13-10 win over Hossein Vafaei, maintaining control after holding a 9-7 lead overnight.
Meanwhile, O’Sullivan dominated early in his match against Pang Junxu, ending their first session up 6-2. The Rocket stormed through the first four frames with impressive breaks of 58, 91, 50, and 63. Pang responded with a 119 break, but O’Sullivan quickly reasserted his lead, winning six of the eight frames.
In the marathon between Higgins and Xiao, neither player managed to pull away during the first two sessions (both ending tied at 4-4 and 8-8). The third session saw more of the same, with Higgins edging ahead 11-10 after an 84 break his 2,000th Crucible frame.
Time constraints forced them to halt play before the match concluded, but Higgins eventually sealed the victory after a tense decider.
Elsewhere, Luca Brecel, trying to rediscover his championship-winning form from two years ago, demolished Ding Junhui to grab a commanding 7-1 lead. Brecel has struggled since winning the title but looked unstoppable against Ding.
Zhao Xintong, seen as a major contender this year, leads compatriot Lei Peifan 10-6 after a strong 5-3 morning session. The winner will meet Chris Wakelin, who’s already upset big names like Neil Robertson and Mark Allen.
Meanwhile, Si Jiahui ended the evening 5-3 up on Ben Woollaston. In a dramatic final frame of the session, Woollaston pulled off two critical snookers, but Si coolly potted the pink to secure the frame and take the lead into Sunday.
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