JOHN Higgins has a friendship with Alan McManus that stretches back a quarter of a century and he claims that will make their battle of Scotland in the Betfred World Championship quarter-finals even more special.

Higgins completed a straightforward second-round triumph over Ricky Walden on Monday evening as a 10-6 overnight lead was comfortably consolidated into a 13-8 triumph – breaks of 59, 92 and 99 seeing him over the line.

That set up a truly fascinating last-eight clash as the two old warhorses do battle once more with 40-year-old Higgins set to enter as favourite ahead of the man five years his senior.

It will be the first time they have met in a quarter-final at the Crucible Theatre but McManus holds the advantage in the World Championship head-to-head winning their first-round clashes in 1995 and 2014, although he lost the second-round encounter in 1996.

But while the 45-year-old will be his enemy once the quarter-final begins at 2.30pm on Tuesday, Higgins is adamant he wouldn’t be the successful, four-time world champion he is without McManus.

“It’s brilliant to be playing Alan in the quarter-finals because I’ve so much respect for him. He is one of the reasons why I’m decent at this game,” explained Higgins.

“I went into the Masters club in Glasgow when I was a 15-year-old boy and he was on the verges of turning professional.

“I watched him day in and day out and was lucky enough to practise with him a lot. I learned so much from him and he’s a great guy as well.

“It will be a great occasion with the two of us in the quarter-finals of the World Championship – it is like a dream for the two of us and may the best man win.

“The good thing is at least Scotland will have at least one player in the semi-finals and I just look forward to a great game.”

While Higgins was cruising past Walden on Monday evening, Ronnie O’Sullivan was fighting for his life – coming from 12-9 down to take Barry Hawkins to a decider at 12-12 thanks to breaks of 124, 88, 63.

O’Sullivan hadn’t faced a decider at the Crucible since 2005 and Hawkins made a classy 56 before the cueball going in-off sealed the five-time world champion’s fate as he lost 13-12.

It was his first defeat to the world No.11 since 2002 and ‘the Rocket’ blamed his poor safety.

“I’m a bit ring rusty and if there was a weakness in my game it was definitely on the tactical side because I haven’t played a lot really,” said O’Sullivan.

“I was second best in 90 or 100 per cent of frames where there was a bit of safety involved and I probably lost all of them.

“It’s a bit like a golfer birdieing 15 holes but taking triple bogey on three holes, you just can’t afford to those all of those frames.”

PLEASE LEAVE IN FINAL PAR – Watch the World Championship LIVE on Eurosport, with Colin Murray and analysis from Jimmy White and Ronnie O’Sullivan.