John Higgins loses to 'animal' Mark Selby in World Snooker Championship exit

John Higgins' dream of a fifth world snooker title is over for another year after losing to 'animal' Mark Selby in the quarter-finals last night.

The Wizard of Wishaw had led the Englishman 4-1 early on in the contest, but the Jester from Leicester roared back and ran out a 13-7 victor at the Cruicible to

And 47-year-old Higgins, who stormed past Kyren Wilson in the previous round with a session to spare, was full of priase for his opponent after he killed off his title bid.

He said: “I played a terrible first frame today. I should definitely have gone 5-4 in front.

"From then it was downhill for me and Mark got stronger. He just totally took me apart. His safety was incredible. I was in bad positions all day. He is an animal on the table, he really is.

“He just continually keeps you on the back foot. When you do come to the table with a chance your mind is a little bit frazzled sometimes. He is a master of the game of snooker. He is an incredible player.

“It’s alright doing it against the other players, when you are against the big boys and they are putting it to you, it is about how you come back. I never came back.

"It is a disappointing end to the tournament for me.”

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