Higgins beaten by teenager Moody in 2,000th matchImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, John Higgins turned professional in 1992 and has won 33 ranking titlesPublished27 minutes agoStan Moody held his nerve to clinch a 5-4 win over John Higgins at the World Open in the veteran’s 2,000th professional match.Higgins, 50, fought back from 4-1 down to square the second-round contest against England’s Moody in Yushan, China.But the 19-year-old, ranked 47th in the world, made a break of 65 in the deciding frame to knock out the four-time world champion.”I watched John growing up and learning the game. To beat him in an important match out in China and to do it with a lot of breaks as well is a good feeling,” Moody told World Snooker, external.
“John is a class act. I knew if I let him back in he would come back, so I’m glad I managed to hold my nerve in the decider.”
Moody’s reward for the victory over defending champion Higgins is a third-round meting with Welshman Ryan Day.
Elsewhere at the Yushan Sport Centre, Masters champion Kyren Wilson eased to a 5-2 win over Lyu Haotian, while world number one Judd Trump cruised to a 5-1 success over Florian Nuessle.
World champion Zhao Xintong claimed a 5-4 victory over Chinese compatriot Long Zehuang.
Mark Williams, Gary Wilson and Jackson Page progressed at the expense of Ricky Walden, Aaron Hill and Liu Wenwei respectively.
