Match Notes:

Frame 24. There's been a slight delay. A member of the audience was taken ill and both players left the arena for a few minutes. The gentleman is I'm glad to report is conscious and receiving attention from the medical staff at the Crucible and play has now resumed. We are going to have a dramatic decider. Higgins only made 29 but Cope was then unlucky. He smashed in a brilliant red but his attempt roll up to the yellow caught the slate joint and rolled off.

This is amazing. Another member of the audience has fainted and the players have left the arena again, at the most critical point of the match.

Well we'll try again. Take Three in this final frame and John Higgins returns and smashes in a long red to get play going again.

And there's the fist pumping from John Higgins as he puts the frame and match beyond doubt. What a great fight back by Higgins, a great performance by Cope and an absolutely fabulous match.

Frame 23. John Higgins shows just why he's won this championship twice, he's produced a brilliant 96 break to close to within a frame, but he needs both remaining frames to pull off a win.

Frame 22. Cope has blitzed through this frame including an audacious double to the centre pocket to keep his break going

Frame 21. Higgins wins this one. It's too close to call still

Frame 20. A superb effort there again by Cope. He's holding his nerve so far, looks calm and that 82 take him two frames ahead at the interval.

Frame 19. The drama continues, the tension is mounting by the minute. Cope looks about the calmest person in the Crucible and he's held on there well and leads again. This is going right to the wire I think and it's another of those matches where neither player deserves to lose.

Frame 18. Just as John Higgins looked like he was going two frames clear, he missed the penultimate red and Cope calmly cleared to pink to level the match.

Frame 17. Well here we go, the final session of this superb match. Who can make the break through to win through to the quarter finals? Higgins has edged the frame. They both had chances and broke down, lost position, but Higgins nipped in on the colours to clinch it.

Frame 16. Cope concludes a superb evening's snooker with a century. Eight frames in little over two hours, 4 centuries, 7 breaks over 50, fabulous stuff.

Frame 15. John Higgins wins another frame. It took two scoring visits that time.

Frame 14. This match just gets better and better with every frame now. There's another classy century by John Higgins.

Frame 13. Cope has taken the lead again. He made 38, and then a very nice fluked red let him in for a run of 84.

Frame 12. What a fascinating battle this is turning into. Whatever John Higgins does, Jamie seems to have an answer and he's cracked into another frame winning century break in double-quick time and they're level at the interval. Incidentally those four frames together took less time than our record breaking frame this afternoon!

Frame 11. For a while it looked as if Cope could take the lead but he missed a red on 38 and Higgins stepped in with a clinical 74 clearance.

Frame 10. It didn't take long for Jamie Cope to rattle off a break and level at 5-5.

Frame 9. John Higgins gets off to a cracking start in tonight's session with a 128 total clearance.

Frame 8. It's honours even after a fascinating first session. Higgins battled on gamely there to get three snookers, but two in-offs made his task too hard.

Frame 7. Despite missing a rather speculative red up to the yellow pocket on 49, Higgins worked another opening and did enough to open a 4-3 lead.

Frame 6. Cope draws level, winning a rather bitty frame.

Frame 5. That's the first rather scrappy frame we've seen. Cope did enough to win it but it took a few chances.

Frame 4. All the reds got pushed towards baulk from the early safety exchanges and it was Higgins who got in amongst them, making 65, which was enough to ensure a 3-1 lead.

Frame 3. The Higgins potting machine has broken down. He was cruising on a break of 49 when he missed a red with the rest and gifted an opening to Cope. Jamie snatched the chance and cleared to the pink with 72.

Frame 2. Real danger signs already for Cope. He got in first but left a red hanging in the jaws on 35. Higgins proceeded to clear the table with 97.

Frame 1. An excellent start by John Higgins. A sniff of a chance and he's closed out the first frame in one visit with a flawless century. That immediately puts pressure on Cope who can see exactly what's going to happen if he misses either a pot or a safety effort.