Wu Yize is through to the second ranking event final of his career after a hard fought 6-4 defeat of Chinese compatriot Xiao Guodong at the BetVictor Scottish Open in Edinburgh.
The hugely talented 21-year-old, who was Rookie of the Year in 2022, is enjoying his finest season on the World Snooker Tour thus far.
Earlier in the campaign, he beat the likes of Judd Trump, Ali Carter and Stuart Bingham to reach a maiden title match at the BetVictor English Open. After a fiercely contested encounter, it was Neil Robertson who prevailed 9-7 in the final.
He now faces the prospect of a best of 17 encounter with either Mark Allen or Lei Peifan. Victory will give Wu the Stephen Hendry Trophy, a top prize of £100,000 and the first ranking event win of his fledgling career.
If he goes on and captures the title he will also move ahead of Robertson in the BetVictor Series standings, ahead of the finale at the Welsh Open. Whoever accumulates the most prize money across the qualifying events will scoop a massive £150,000 bonus.
Xiao bows out after yet another deep run in his best ever season as a professional, having first joined the tour back in 2007. He claimed maiden ranking event glory at the Wuhan Open and was a losing finalist at the Champion of Champions.
A cagey first two frames this afternoon went the way of Xiao, before Wu came from behind to take the third and then made 63 in the fourth to head into the mid-session at 2-2.
When play resumed, Xiao made 76 to regain the lead at 3-2 and then claimed the sixth on the pink to move 4-2 up.
Xiao led a crucial seventh 56-0, before falling out of position. With the balls in uninviting positions, a stunning break of 67 from Wu saw him steal on the black and close to 4-3 behind.
That was the moment where momentum shifted, as Wu hammered home further runs of 57, 115 and 54 to make it four on the bounce and a 6-4 victory.
"I really enjoyed the atmosphere today. In the past, I might have felt a lot of pressure in situations like this, but now I just find it enjoyable," said world number 27 Wu.
"Today, we played on a new cloth and with new balls. The first four frames were challenging, as we were adapting to the table and the conditions, which were quite different from yesterday. Later on, both of us made some adjustments.
"Of course I’m eager to win the title, but for me it’s also about enjoying the process. Winning the title would be a way to reward myself for all these years of effort. For every tournament, becoming champion is hard to come by and it requires me to be at my best."