Neil Robertson sets up Shaun Murphy quarter-finals Masters clash after victory over John Higgins at Alexandra Palace
Neil Robertson made the most of his 11th hour call-up to the Masters with an impressive fightback to beat John Higgins 6-5 in the opening round on Sunday.
Currently outside of the qualifying positions, the Bottisham-based player was not originally due to feature in the top-16 event at Alexandra Palace in London.
However, reigning champion Ronnie O’Sullivan’s late withdrawal on medical grounds opened up space for Robertson, who has won the tournament on two previous occasions.
And yet it looked like being a brief appearance for the Australian after he found himself 5-1 down against his Scottish opponent in the first-to-six frames contest.
But Robertson, who practises at WT’s Sports Bar in Cambridge city centre, responded in emphatic fashion to rack up five frames in a row and advance through to the quarter-finals.
The 42-year-old said: “An unbelievable match, I didn’t do a lot wrong really. John was playing incredibly well for 5-1 and he didn’t really do anything wrong.
“I played at my absolute best and I’m just so happy I could take my chance with Ronnie dropping out and give the crowd something to cheer about today.
“My target for the second half of the season is to bring my practice game and my talent (to matches). I don’t think many people have seen exactly what I can do. That match there shows how well I can actually play.
“That’s how I play in practice, I play that quick and people are constantly on at me about trying to replicate that.”
Meanwhile, Higgins, who is just the sixth player in the competition’s history to surrender a 5-1 advantage, added: “It’s a tough one to take. My concentration went a little bit at 5-1 up when I missed that red over the middle trying to play down for the black. I have no complaints – it’s fine margins.
“Neil played tremendously well to come back. He really put the pressure on me. I maybe played the wrong shot when I went into the pack in the last frame. But Neil played great to come back. You’ve got to hold your hands up sometimes.”
Robertson will now take on Shaun Murphy for a place in the semi-finals on Thursday (16 January).
The two players have met in the final of the competition on two occasions, coming out with a victory apiece.
Murphy said: “It will be a delight to play Neil. We turned pro in the same year in 1998 and I have immense respect for him.
“I’ll be here and hoping to bring my A game. Over the last couple of days people have been saying that Neil is on a free roll, but he’s a multiple winner, not a wildcard who has never been here before.”
