John Higgins reveals snooker retirement edict he WILL follow as icon floats World Championship last crack

Scottish snooker legend John Higgins has revealed it could be his last time playing at the Crucible.

The four-time world champion, 48, kicks off his title bid against Jamie Jones today. After losing to Mark Allen at the recent Tour Championship, crestfallen Higgins admitted it could be his "last crack" at the World Championship. Asked whether that was still the case, the all-conquering Scot said: "It could be my last time playing here.

"The game's tough, it really is. I'm going to immerse myself in the tournament, the city, give it everything and see where it takes me. We'll just have to wait and see what happens." At the end of last season, Higgins insisted he would consider his future if he fell out of the elite top 16.

Only those 16 are seeded at the Crucible, with the rest of the tour having to go through the gruelling qualifying stages. And Higgins, who has not needed to qualify since way back in 1995, is provisionally 17th on the ranking list heading into next season.

But a run here would fire the Wizard of Wishaw right back among the top echelon. It is the all-time great's 30th successive appearance at the iconic venue and he is savouring every second of what could be his last pilgrimage to the sport's spiritual Sheffield home.

"It's my 30th year and I've got to be proud of the fact I've stayed at the top level for 30 years continuously here as a seed," said Higgins. That's an achievement in its own right. The people who have retired before me have said that once you retire it's the one you really miss, coming back here and playing here. That's probably what will happen to me too. When you hit the age of 50 that's when the eyes begin to tell you that it's not happening as good as they used to do. I'm nearly there but we'll wait and see what happens."

Welsh qualifier Jones, 36, has proved he is a match for anyone in Sheffield. Former world champion Neil Robertson was described as the "nuclear bomb" in qualifying but Jones edged him out 10-9 in a tense battle on Judgment Day. He reached the quarter-finals on debut in 2012, knocking out Shaun Murphy, stunned the 2005 winner again in 2018 and hammered Stephen Maguire two years later.

And the world No.41, who is working with a sports psychologist, said: "I just need to keep telling myself I'm good enough, believing I'm good enough, and one day it will come. I've been threatening to be a good player for 20 years! These moments, playing the big players in front of the big crowd, will define me in a few years' time. I'm really trying to make the most of this opportunity."