Xiao Guodong continued his dream season by defeating world number three Mark Allen 6-3 and reaching the final of the Grosvenor Casinos Champion of Champions in Bolton.
Xiao, who first turned professional in 2007, clinched his place in this showpiece event by capturing a maiden ranking crown at the Wuhan Open. He followed that up by making the semi-finals of the recent International Championship and is now through to a second final of the campaign.
The 35-year-old scored stunning wins over Ronnie O'Sullivan and Mark Selby yesterday to reach this evening's semi-final, where he overhauled another one of snooker's superstars. Defending champion Allen earned his place in the last four with wins over Igor Figueiredo and Jak Jones.
The opener this evening saw Xiao compile a run of 65 and steal on the black to earn an early 1-0 advantage. Allen equalised by taking the second, but contributions of 83 and 71 saw Xiao lead 3-1 at the mid-session.
When play resumed, Allen hit back by taking the next two to restore parity at 3-3. However, Xiao responded by pulling away again to move 5-3 up and one from victory. The ninth frame came down to the colours, with Xiao eventually playing a sensational shot on the blue to develop the pink. That allowed him to deposit the final two balls and earn his place in the final.
He can now look forward to facing either Mark Williams or Neil Robertson in Sunday's title match, where a top prize of £150,000 will be on the line.
Xiao said: "I still can't believe I did it. When it went to 4-3 today, I saw a big change in him. I think he changed mentally after that. I just told myself to keep focussing on every shot.
"I will just enjoy watching tomorrow's game now. I don't care if I play Mark or Neil. They are both legendary players. I will just enjoy it. That's it."
Williams and Robertson will do battle in the second semi-final from 7pm tomorrow evening.