Nonetheless, the man from Camarthen is at his most dangerous in the longer matches and has shown in the past that he plays better when his back is against the wall.

He will relish the fact that for a change he is playing an opponent who he is not expected to beat and in front of a packed crowd, rather than playing in front of empty seats at a Prestatyn qualifier against a club player.

Higgins’ form since his second world title crown has been patchy to say the least and he has not even reached a final since his heroics at The Crucible last May Day.

That in itself should not count against him as Higgins came here twelve months ago without a tournament success all season. If Higgins discovers the fluency he found here last year then very few players in the field will get the better of him.

But the recent weight of history would suggest that Higgins has a tough assignment if he is to retain his title and Stevens having a rare opportunity of late to take on an old rival from his tournament challenging days in front of a packed crowd and a television audience full of anticipation is bound to get his competitive juices going.

Higgins is sometimes a slow starter in tournaments while Stevens has excellent form over course and distance. Take Stevens to record a famous victory and the graveyard of defending champions to roll over to an unlucky thirteenth year. Prediction: Higgins 8-10 Stevens