Barry Hawkins downs Mark Selby to reach European Masters final, Judd Trump squeezes past John Higgins

Judd Trump reached the final of the European Masters after beating John Higgins, with Barry Hawkins defeating Mark Selby in the other semi-final.

Selby, the losing finalist of this year’s World Championship, has only the WST Classic to his name in 2023, while Hawkins was a runner-up in this tournament last year.

Selby hit the ground running with a huge opening break, scoring 134 in one visit to take the first frame.

Hawkins was not intimidated and hit back with his own century of 106 to level things, and alternate half-century breaks from Selby and then his opponent left the scores balanced at 2-2.

Selby then won the fifth frame with a 54 to go back in front in their best-of-11 for the right to play Trump in Sunday’s final.

Hawkins continued to resist with his own big breaks, the first of 92 and then of 70 to edge ahead for the first time in the match.

The world No. 5 then pulled level as he fell six short of a century break, before both players scored half centuries in a finely balanced 66-59 win for Hawkins, leaving the latter just a frame from victory.

In trademark Selby style, he found himself needing snookers to stay in contention but rather than roll over, persisted in the hope of forcing enough errors from his opponent, 40 behind with 33 on the table, though he was unable to battle back and Hawkins took his sixth frame for the win.

Higgins was 3-0 up after the opening stages with a half century in the first and third frames, but it was Trump who hit the first century.

In the fourth frame, the Englishman received a boost with a break of 111, before then scoring 93 in one visit to reduce the deficit to a single frame.

Higgins, who scored heavily in his visits to the table in a 5-3 win over Kyren Wilson in Friday’s quarter-finals, then scored 114 to go 4-2 clear.

Trump had little difficulty in his quarter-final, as he beat Ashley Carty who was playing in his first tour last-eight match.

Two frames then went in Trump’s favour to leave the match tied at 4-4, before breaks of 54 and then 60 from the Scotsman left him fighting to stay in contention.

An 80-0 10th frame plus a break of 73 in the decisive final face-off took Trump into Sunday’s final.

Speaking after his win, Trump reflected in a change of fortunes, saying: “When you don’t win early on it depletes your confidence, your belief.

“So, the difference this season has been night and day, just from playing a couple of events and winning, getting the confidence and coming here. It’s just things like the game against Chris Wakelin, I could easily have been out, already at home for two days.

“Now I’m playing in the final so that’s how fine the line is, I always say. There were so many times last season where I probably should have won but ended up going out. This time I probably should have been out, and I’m in the final. Every season is so different, and you’ve just got to take it when it comes.”

Trump will take on the winner of Mark Selby v Barry Hawkins, which begins at 7pm on Saturday evening.