FOUR-TIME world champion John Higgins showed that he is a genuine threat to lift the trophy for a fifth time by making a strong start to his last-16 encounter with world No.3 Ding Junhui.

The Scot didn't score particularly heavily on Thursday evening, a break of 73 was his highest, but he still leads the Chinese superstar 5-3.

Higgins made a number of series of small contributions to move into a 2-0 lead at the Crucible Theatre but Ding's 135 in frame three showed what he is capable of.

But the 39-year-old from Wishaw, currently ranked number 13 in the world, proved he can still mix it with the sport's best to reel off the next three and hold a healthy 5-1 advantage.

Ding's Crucible record is surprisingly poor for a player of his quality - the 28-year-old has advanced beyond the second round on only two occasions - but he brought himself back in touch by clinching the final two frames of the sessions.

Runs of 67 and 94 did the trick and both players will be hoping to build on their displays when the pair resume at 2.30pm today.

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