Having won the Northern Ireland Open at the end of October, Kyren Wilson is chasing back-to-back titles as he goes toe-to-toe with John Higgins in Saturday’s International Championship final in Nanjing, China.
The Warrior, world champion in 2024, has rediscovered peak form at the perfect time and made light work of home talent Fan Zhengyi in the semi-finals, recording a 9-6 success.
However, Higgins took no time at all to book his place in the final and his 9-2 win over the highly-touted Chang Bingyu came on the back of wins over Xu Si, Mark Williams and Marco Fu.
Higgins was beaten in the final of this tournament last year, losing 10-6 to Wu Yize, and will be desperate to make amends in a competition he won back in 2015.
At 51 years of age, it would be fair to say Higgins’ glory days are behind him, but the world number six continues to hold his form well despite his advancing years.
Wilson won the last meeting between the pair, which came in a 10-6 victory in the Masters final in January, and he tends to come into his own over the longer format.
Kyren Wilson v John Higgins Tips Summary
Best Bet - Kyren Wilson to win @ 8/11
Alternative Bet - Kyren Wilson -2.5 frame handicap @ 6/4
Kyren Wilson v John Higgins Prediction
Best Bet: Kyren Wilson to win @ 8/11
Higgins remains remarkably consistent despite being in the twilight of his career but the Wizard of Wishaw can often run out of steam when he gets to the final hurdle.
The Scot has to work harder than ever before to go deep in tournaments due to the growing quality on the World Snooker Tour and he has been beaten in 12 of his last 17 ranking event finals.
Beaten 10-6 by Wu Yize in last season’s International Championship final, Higgins may suffer the same fate against Wilson, who has rediscovered the winning habit.
The Warrior won the Northern Ireland Open prior to travelling to China, which means he has triumphed in his last 11 matches.
Wins over Ding Junhui and Fan Zhengyi in the last two rounds read well and he has been in a rich vein of scoring form.
Wilson had two centuries in victory over Fan in the semi-finals and he has come out on top the last two times he has met Higgins over the longer format, winning 10-6 in the Masters final in January and easing to a 13-8 success at the 2024 World Championship.
Alternative Bet: Kyren Wilson -2.5 frame handicap @ 6/4
A best-of-19-frame encounter certainly plays to Wilson’s strengths, with Higgins regularly showing fatigue in a trophy-deciding match, so the Warrior can run out a convincing winner.
The longer the format, the stronger Wilson tends to become and he has a striking record in ranking finals, winning each of his last six.
That includes the Northern Ireland Open last time out, when he beat Jak Jones 9-2 in a one-sided final, and he should be well up to covering the handicap.
Wilson brushed aside Higgins 10-6 in their most recent meeting, which came in the final of the Masters in January, and he has won four of their past six rivalries.
Kyren Wilson v John Higgins H2H Record & Stats
Kyren Wilson | 8 |
John Higgins | 20 |
Key Match Stats
Kyren Wilson has won each of his last 11 matches
Wilson has won his last six ranking event finals
The Warrior has won four of his last six meetings with John Higgins
Higgins has lost 10 of his last 13 ranking event finals
The Wizard of Wishaw has had the highest break in four of his last six matches
Four of Wilson’s last seven matches have gone over the total frames
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.
