John Higgins wants to see more appreciation for world number one Judd Trump, who he believes should be seen as the flag-bearer for snooker.
Trump won his 31st ranking title when he triumphed at the German Masters earlier this month, putting him fourth on the all-time list of ranking tournament winners.
Only Ronnie O’Sullivan (41), Stephen Hendry (36) and Higgins (33) sit above him on that list of snooker greats.
The Ace won the 2019 World Championship, but that remains his only Crucible glory, which is often a stick used to beat him with by his critics.
Higgins feels any criticism of the 36-year-old is unwarranted, though, believing he has done more than enough to be seen as the sport’s greatest star.
O’Sullivan still holds that position and while there is much naval-gazing over who will replace the Rocket as snooker’s shining light when he hangs his cue up, Higgins feels the answer is staring us right in the face.
‘I’ll be brutally honest. I hear a lot of people saying this, and I don’t know what Judd Trump has got to do in the game to actually be classed as the next flag-bearer,’ said Higgins. ‘Because he’s won just as much as anybody in the game.
‘It’s maybe not the world titles that he wants, but I’m sure they’ll come. And for him to have won the volume of titles, the style he plays, smart-looking young guy, I don’t know why more’s not made of him being the flag-bearer for the game.
‘That’s just my personal opinion. It just always seems to be maybe, you talk about Ronnie and maybe the class of 92, and then everybody’s talking about [Zhao] Xintong now, that he could come and dominate now.
‘I think you’ve just got to give that guy so much kudos for what he’s been doing in the game in the last six or seven years.’
Higgins and Trump have met in some classic contests, including two memorable World Championship finals, with Higgins winning in 2011 and Trump triumphing in 2019.
The Scot is not sure why the Englishman doesn’t quite get the adulation he feels he deserves, but feels it might be because he hasn’t got the wild side to his character that other snooker stars have displayed.
‘He’s just a decent young guy who you never see in trouble,’ said Higgins. ‘So the British public… I know he’s well-liked in China. He’s got a lot of fans in Europe. But maybe the British public want a guy like [Alex] Higgins or a Jimmy White or a Ronnie.
‘There’s maybe a little bit of baggage there that they can shout for. But I really don’t know, because he plays the game just as swashbuckling as these guys as well. So I’ve just never understood it.’
Trump has expressed a similar sentiment about his own career in the past, expecting the recognition to come when he retires.
Asked last year if he feels underappreciated, he said: ‘I think now more than ever I am.
‘For my age I’ve won a lot of events and achieved a lot of things in snooker.
Winning six ranking titles in a season gets forgotten about a little bit. I think it’s an extremely tough record to break.
‘The amount of times I’ve managed to win four, five or six events in a season consistently. I’m proud of myself for what I’ve achieved. I don’t need other people to tell me how great it is, but it would be nice for people to recognise it.
‘It’s probably something that happens when you retire. It seems to be the same in every sport, you’re not appreciated or people don’t appreciate what you’ve achieved until the end of your career.’
Higgins got his Players Championship campaign underway on Tuesday with an impressive 6-1 win over Neil Robertson, setting up a quarter-final clash with Chris Wakelin of Xiao Guodong.
Trump begins his Telford challenge on Wednesday afternoon against Zhou Yuelong.
