Rejuvenated Neil Robertson set to trouble home hope John Higgins

Scottish Open semi-final
Live on Eurosport 1, 1pm & 7pm Saturday

John Higgins blew away old foe Ronnie O’Sullivan in the last eight of the Scottish Open but the home hope may struggle to reproduce such a smooth success against a rejuvenated Neil Robertson.

Higgins is a master when everything clicks and his 5-0 demolition of the Rocket on Friday was an indicator that the Scotsman has his game in prime shape.

Higgins has dropped just two frames in totting up his five wins in Glasgow this week and any mishaps from Robertson are likely to be punished.

Playing in front of his home crowd is an added incentive but Marco Fu came from 4-1 down to land last season’s title at Higgins’ expense and victory in this content will not be easy.

The veteran rattled in consecutive centuries of 109, 117 and 105 in the O’Sullivan whitewash but Robertson’s return has been largely down to mustering big breaks and there’s plenty to like about his performances.

The Aussie ace has had a quiet few months on the baize but his efforts in the Betway UK Championship hinted that a revival was fast approaching and his deciding frame win over Xiao Guodong in the last round has restored faith.

Robertson made eight centuries while winning just 17 frames in York last week and his run to the semi-final in Glasgow has seen him tally a further eight.

The 35-year-old will be frustrated by dropping out of the top 16 and missing out on a spot in the Masters but he has the character to make amends and winning the Scottish Open would put him at ease.

Safety battles may not be high up the pecking order and punters should take advantage by betting on an explosive affair. Robertson to hit a century is an even-money chance with Betway and that looks the way to go.

Higgins, spurred on by home support, should give his all but Robertson is rediscovering his spark and looks motivated to make up for missing out on an illustrious Masters berth.

A focused Judd Trump is a red-favourite to defeat Chinese ace Cao Yupeng in the first semi-final and it's difficult to dispute the bookmakers' quotes.

Trump breezed past the heavy-scoring Stephen Maguire on Friday and his 6-1 thumping of Yupeng in the European Masters semi-final in October suggests he may once again have his measure.

Recommendations
N Robertson over 0.5 centuries
2pts Evs Betway
N Robertson
1pt 11-8 Coral, Ladbrokes

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