O’Sullivan has a colourful history and off- table life, a volatile temperament and the innate confidence of the instinctive genius. Higgins has nothing to declare but an excellence he applies himself unremittingly to maintain.O’Sullivan’s five finals this season have yielded four titles, but he is a virtuoso, not merely inconsistent but too impatient of his own imperfections. Even when – especially when – Higgins is struggling, he never loses his intensity of purpose as O’Sullivan tends to. Only John Higgins now stands between the Irishman and a second successive title. Higgins, cushioned by the 8-0 session whitewash which had given him a 12-4 overnight lead, completed a 17-9 victory.
If he picks up the pounds 220,000 winner’s cheque, Higgins, who has won three titles from his seven finals this season, will take top place in the end- of-season rankings, thereby ending the eight-year reign of his fellow Scot, Stephen Hendry, as the world No 1.Doherty won a fluctuating match of tight frames, many potting positional errors and few impressive breaks. He could summon no further resistance, totalling only 12 in the remaining three frames as Doherty’s experience and match toughness told.In his six events since February, Doherty has reached a quarter-final, four semis and a final.

He was given no second chance in that frame and did not score in the next after his initial 50, Doherty snatching it on the pink with a 49 clearance to level at 13-13.Williams led 14-13 but when he was 25 behind in the 28th with one red remaining he was trapped in a snooker which led to his resignation after four failed escapes had seen his deficit grow to 41. He was about to take a significant step in that direction when he overcut the green at close range in the day’s opening frame with a three-frame lead there for the taking. At 41-0, it seemed as if he might finish Friday at 12-12, but Williams’ winning 56 left him 13-11 adrift going into yesterday’s concluding session.Williams was attempting to become the first Welshman to reach the final since Terry Griffiths lost to Steve Davis 10 years ago. His clinching 79 superseded Williams’ 71 as the highest of four sessions of mediocre break-making, particularly in the context of the 52 centuries the championship has produced so far – four more than the previous record.Doherty led 6-2 after one session but was 12-8 adrift midway through the third before breaking his seven-frame losing streak, three in black- ball finishes, with three consecutive successes of his own. Only Joe Johnson, the surprise winner in 1986, runner- up to Steve Davis a year later, had reached the final before Doherty did so yesterday with a grindingly hard-earned 17-14 victory over Mark Williams, the Benson & Hedges Masters champion. Patrik Sjoland’s first-round lead from Friday evening did not last long as Ireland’s Paul McGinley scored a nine-under-par 63.Like many sequels, however, his second effort did not live up to the first.

He scored an eight at the eighth, the hole that was shortened by 135 yards to 385 but retained its par-five status. McGinley duly eagled the hole in the morning, but found the water twice in the afternoon. He recovered well, however, finishing with three birdies in his last four holes.Sjoland and Olazabal only began their second rounds late in the day, but both went out in 32 The Swede leads on the course at 13 under.. NO first-time Crucible champion has ever made a successful title defence. My goals are not just to win tournaments but to be one of the best in Europe and one of the best in the world.”After two days of inactivity, the second half of the draw finally got on to the course yesterday morning.