John Higgins sets date for possible retirement after he joins Ronnie O'Sullivan in revealing future plans - 'Slip out the back door'

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Four-time world champion John Higgins has floated the prospect of bringing the curtain down on his golden 34-year professional career after admitting that it is "tough" meeting the constant demands of practice and competition among the sport's elite.

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The Scotsman is still at the very top of the professional game, having narrowly missed out on a spot in the world final in Sheffield in May, losing 17-15 to an inspired Shaun Murphy.

But at the age of 51, Higgins concedes his thoughts are turning to the time when he will hang up his cue for good, as he considers reducing a hectic schedule which sees him miss next week's English Open in Brentwood, live on TNT Sports with HBO Max.

Fellow 'Class of '92' member Ronnie O'Sullivan has already touted 2028 as a possible deadline for winning a record eighth world title before he considers quitting.

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The snooker GOAT only played in two events in the UK last season, and lamented the condition of his game after a 6-3 defeat to Chang Bingyu in the Wuhan Open semi-finals.

"I will see out the next 18 months and see how we go," said O'Sullivan. "I don't want to throw the towel in just yet. I've committed to playing until then.

"I want to give myself a chance. I'd hate to finish my career on performances like that."

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Higgins echoed O'Sullivan's thoughts, having begun his successful snooker career by winning the first of his 33 ranking titles with a 9-6 victory over Dave Harold at the 1994 Grand Prix in Derby.

"I'm not playing in the English Open, and my thought process now is, I'll play in so many events and then in the next maybe two years, I'll just retire," he told the Metro.

"I think it'll be hard to play a lot of events and then just shut it right off. I think it might help to taper off. If I'm not playing so many events, see how I'm feeling, but I'll probably take it [retirement] better.

"I think it’ll be the next couple of years. I think so. Obviously, Ronnie says he's thinking about going around 2028, so I'll just slip out the back door."

Unlike O'Sullivan, Higgins is a picture of calm, but insists he needs to be playing someone in practice to retain focus, with Elliot Slessor recently joining him in Glasgow for a few sparring sessions.

He remains in the mix for a record fifth British Open crown after setting up a meeting with Thanawat Tirapongpaiboon in the last 16 on Thursday courtesy of a 4-3 win over fellow Thai potter Noppon Saengkham, the recent China Open runner-up.

The world No. 6 won the World Open and Tour Championship last year, and has reached two major finals in 2026, losing to Kyren Wilson (10-6) at the Masters and Zhao Xintong (10-7) in the final of the Players Championship.

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"We'll see how that pans out in the next year or so. It's just difficult putting the work in," said Higgins. "It's tough. I don't want to start coming to tournaments and hating the competing side, because that's what I've always enjoyed.

"There has to come a point, I think, that you've got to say enough is enough. I think subconsciously I will know that, and I'm getting to a stage where I could be near the end."

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