Barry Hawkins is rueing a major missed opportunity against a below-par John Higgins after he was knocked out in the semi-finals of the Betfred World Championship.

The Ditton potter was far from his best as he limped out of the tournament, going down 17-8 to the four-time champion at the Crucible Theatre.

The damage was done early on Saturday morning, as Hawkins produced one of his worst sessions of snooker of the season – allowing Higgins to build up a 16-8 lead.

And the Scotsman needed just one frame to set up a final against defending champion Mark Selby, which he clinched with a century to dash Hawkins’ dreams for another year.

The left-hander was positive after the match, reflecting on a superb season – where he won the World Grand Prix and cemented his place in the top-16, ensuring he will be back in Sheffield this time next year.

But he could not escape the fact that he under-performed in his third world semi-final, when he knew beforehand that he needed to improve on his quarter-final display against Stephen Maguire.

“I struggled from the off and could not get any momentum going. I dragged John down in the match, I played so bad,” Hawkins said.

“He did not play well either and I think I dragged him down. I was missing and then he started missing, we dragged each other down a little bit.

“If I started playing well, I would have got his level up a little bit. It is a bit disappointing but I am not going to beat myself up.

“There were load of opportunities, you won’t catch too many days where John plays like that. It was so frustrating, I was trying and trying. I was digging in as much as I could but I kept missing and losing the white ball all the time.

“It is a horrible place to be when it gets like that. It can get a little bit embarrassing but I have enough experience to know it is just a bad day at the office.

“I will be back next year. I have had a great season and got to another semi-final, so I can’t be too upset.”

The evening session was simply a procession, as Hawkins entered the arena knowing he needed to win ten frames on the bounce to reach his second final.

That was far from realistic, as Higgins showed by rattling in a century to wrap up the match, leaving Hawkins to reflect on a torrid third session – where he lost six of the eight on offer.

A series of missed simple shots and loose safety kept leaving Higgins in the balls, and the Scotsman – although far from his best – routinely cleared.

“I am pleased, I did not give up,” Hawkins said.

“There was a point during that match where I felt like just smashing the reds everywhere but that is not me – I was that close to doing it but I thought it was disrespectful to John.”

Watch the Snooker World Championship Live on Eurosport and Eurosport Player, with Colin Murray and analysis from Jimmy White and Neal Foulds.