| Venue: Crucible Theatre, Sheffield Dates: 16 April-2 May |
| Coverage: Watch live on BBC TV and Red Button with uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport website and the BBC Sport app |
The World Championship semi-finals are tied at 4-4 after a tense opening.
The four-time champion made two half-centuries to establish a three-point lead.
O'Sullivan, who is chasing a seventh world title, won four of the next five frames with breaks of 70 and 54.
The match will resume on Friday.
O'Sullivan struggled to get going early on and his average shot time crept over 29 seconds in the first two frames.
While both players appeared to feel the enormity of the occasion, Scotland's Higgins was able to forge ahead by mopping up O'Sullivan's errors and enjoying the better of the tactical exchanges.
The highlight of the evening was the break of 116 by the Englishman in the sixth frame, after he had come back from three frames down.
The opening session was all square after a break of 107 saw the Class of 92 finish the opening session all square.
Judd Trump dominated the first session of his semi-final against Mark Williams to take a 7-1 lead.
Trump took a nervy opening frame that lasted more than 30 minutes and included a re-rack and went on to make two breaks of 70 before Williams took the final frame before the mid-session interval.
Trump made three more half-centuries to pull clear, with Williams' difficulties mirrored in the second session of his quarter-final victory over Bingtao, where he suffered several concentration lapse and was punished for missing routine pots.
Even in the frames where Trump made a lot of contributions, Williams was given chances to score over himself but he struggled with his long game.
It was an ideal first session for Trump, who has won 18 of their 27 previous meetings and has now won 15 of his past 16 frames over two matches.
The Welshman is facing a huge uphill task to reach his fifth Crucible final from the best-of-33 encounter with Trump.
Steve Davis is a six-time world champion.
The job is a lot easier if your opponent does not put up resistance. Mark Williams went off the boil. He was expected to continue his form.
If one player gets away from another, that's what happens in snooker. The other guy has to wait for the session to end so he can regroup. It is unlikely that roles can be reversed.
John Parrott is a world champion.
Judd Trump did what he was supposed to do. It has been very functional. He has kept the pressure on and his opponent has been off it.
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