Shaun Murphy and Luca Brecel reach final of Evergrande China Championship
Shaun Murphy and Luca Brecel will meet in the Evergrande China Championship final after coming through hard-fought semi-final clashes on Monday.
Murphy recovered from 4-2 down to beat Ali Carter 6-4 while Brecel saw off home player Li Hang in a final-frame decider.
Carter and Murphy shared the first four before a 52 break earned Carter the first of two successive frames, leaving Murphy seemingly in trouble.
He responded well, though, with a 69 break sparking a run of four frames in a row to settle a match short on break-building.
That charge could not be levelled at the second semi, in which Brecel knocked in a century in frame seven and each player had four breaks of 50-plus in all.
The Belgian was first on the mark with an 81 in the opener, Li responding with 52 to level but losing the third despite an identical break.
Brecel took the fourth with yet another 52 but was pegged back to 3-3, Li making 60 in frame six, before a 107 took Brecel ahead once more.
Li, who had never before been beyond the last 16 of a ranking tournament, took two in a row - moving within one frame of victory after his highest break of the match, an 86.
Brecel levelled, though, and closed out the match with a 75 in the decider. He is guaranteed the biggest payday of his career - even defeat in his second ranking final would earn him £75,000 - while victory in the best-of-19 clash would make him the first player from continental Europe to win a ranking title.
