Luca Brecel showed flashes of brilliance in a 6-3 win over debutant Chris Wakelin at the Johnstone's Paint Masters as he joined a quarter-final line-up which includes six former winners of the event plus the last two World Champions.
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Brecel will meet current Crucible king Kyren Wilson on Friday evening at Alexandra Palace, after showdowns between Shaun Murphy and Neil Robertson, Mark Selby and Mark Allen, then Judd Trump and Ding Junhui. The eight players left chasing the Paul Hunter Trophy have 31 Triple Crown titles between them.
Since his victory in Sheffield 20 months ago, Brecel has not won another individual title, but he showed improved form before Christmas with runs to the quarter-finals of the BetVictor Scottish Open then the final of the Riyadh Season Snooker Championship. Tonight's display was far from perfect but he reminded fans of his genius with several extraordinary pots, notably a brown in the opening frame which Stephen Hendry, commentating for BBC, described as "one of the best shots I have ever seen."
The Belgian ace doubled his tally of wins at the Masters, having previously only registered a single victory in his four previous appearances in London.
He said afterwards: "I think the next ten years could be my best. I am still very young and I have a good mindset to perform."
Wakelin led 47-27 in the opening frame when he missed a tricky red with the rest, and Brecel's 36 clearance included that thunderbolt brown, played at pace along the baulk cushion. Wakelin levelled with a run of 69 and had chances in frame three but couldn't take them, and Brecel eventually converted excellent long pots on the pink and black. World number eight Brecel's run of 89 made it 3-1 and he led 43-0 in frame five when he underhit an awkward red to a centre pocket, letting Wakelin in for a run of 67 to halve the gap.
Brecel dominated the sixth for 4-2, before his opponent emerged successfully from a safety exchange on the green in the seventh. Frame eight also came down to the green, Wakelin potting it but then missing the brown when he looked set for 4-4. Brecel rifled in tremendous long pots on brown, blue and pink for 5-3. Wakelin's night ended when he touched a ball with the rest as he tried to move it into position for a scoring chance in frame nine, handing Brecel the table for a closing 73.
"There were a few misses but apart from that I felt good," added 29-year-old Brecel. "It's tough to settle in this arena, I played some good and bad frames but the most important thing was to get the win. I'm not yet 100% confident but I feel I'm getting better and really looking forward to the rest of the season.
"This tournament is so hard, because of the crowd and the history of the Masters. To win it you have to play really well, and don't bottle it."
Brecel is planning to take on the Ironman triathlon in 2028 and is training for that challenge. He said: "The feeling you get from running and cycling is amazing, you feel like a different person. People who don't play sport under-estimate the benefits of it. I feel much lighter and I can go for longer when the matches get long and tough. It's good mentally, for example tomorrow I will have a day off so I will go for a run which fills up the day and takes your mind off snooker."
Wakelin has climbed into the top 16 for the first time this season and relished his first appearance at the sport's biggest invitation event, though admitted that his focus has not been on preparation in recent weeks as he became a father for the first time last month.
He said: "I absolutely loved it out there, walking into the arena is a moment I will never forget. I didn't play well, but the last few weeks have been very hectic and the last thing on my mind has been practising for this event. I tried my best. Given it was my first time out there I knew it wouldn't be easy, but I felt comfortable."