Shaun Murphy He will face Robert Milkins in Sunday’s Welsh Open final after beating China’s Pang Junxu 6-3 in Llandudno.
Beating Daniel Wells in the fourth round earlier this week by 147, Murphy reached his first qualifying final since the 2021 Worlds.
The 40-year-old player took a 4-2 lead in the tough fight, taking a 58-point break in the sixth frame.
Pang responded with a score of 62 on the next step, but Murphy regained his two-square pad and took an 83 break on the final frame to seal the victory.
Earlier on Saturday, Milkins beat China’s Tian Pengfei 6-2 to stay on track to secure the £150,000 European series jackpot.
Sunday’s victory will guarantee Milkin a top spot on the BetVictor Series ranking list, which has spanned eight events since last July.
The 46-year-old from Gloucester took 61, 109, 89 and 82 timeouts against Pang, who failed to reproduce form when he reached his first semi-final by beating Ali Carter, John Higgins and Ronnie O’Sullivan. .
Milkins told world billiards After reaching its second-place final, the Tour said: “This is huge, the biggest game of my life. I don’t know how to deal with it.
“Just playing for the championship will be enough, let alone everything that comes with it. I don’t know if I’ll be able to stand up but I can adapt to the situation.”