Ronnie O’Sullivan prevailed in his first meeting with Ding Junhui on Chinese soil in 15 years, winning 6-3 to make the semi-finals of the Shanghai Masters.
The pair are snooker’s biggest global superstars and have enjoyed a storied rivalry throughout their respective careers, but last played each other in China at the 2009 Shanghai Masters.
Victory for O’Sullivan extends his dominance in the head-to-head standings to 23-5. The Rocket continues his quest for a fifth straight Shanghai Masters title and has now won his last 20 games in the city.
The pair traded blows to find themselves locked together at 3-3 this evening, when O’Sullivan made his move. Breaks 131, 70 and 62 saw the seven-time Crucible king secure three on the bounce and seal victory. He now faces a blockbuster semi-final with 2019 World Champion Judd Trump.
“I don’t think either of us played anywhere near our best, but I just tried my hardest and I’m happy to get the win,” said 41-time ranking event winner O’Sullivan.
“Every match is a tough one in this tournament. You have the 16 best players in the world. We all play to a very high standard, each game is like a final. I’m pleased to still be in and looking forward to have a chance of winning this fantastic event again.”
Trump booked his place in the semis with a 6-2 defeat of Si Jiahui, in what was a repeat of this year’s German Masters final. Trump composed breaks of 74, 75 and 101 on his way to the win.
Mark Selby produced a four frame blitz to defeat Pang Junxu 6-3 and set up a last four meeting with close friend Shaun Murphy.
The Leicester cueman is making his first appearance of the new campaign, having vowed to carry on playing after calling his future into doubt at the end of last season.
Selby's only previous meeting with Pang came in last year's WST Classic final, where the four-time World Champion prevailed by a 6-2 scoreline. Today's encounter saw Pang lead 2-1, before a burst of breaks helped Selby to charge to the line. Runs of 75, 60, 81 and 118 gave him four frames in a row and a place in the last four.
Murphy continued his impressive start to the week with a 6-2 win over Zhou Yuelong, who whitewashed World Champion Kyren Wilson yesterday. Murphy scored a fine 6-3 win over John Higgins in the last round and breaks of 57, 70, 66, 61 and 69 helped him to a comfortable win this afternoon.