World Open snooker day five review: Judd Trump beats Michael Holt; John Higgins and Kyren Wilson claim big wins
Judd Trump took one step closer to his second ranking title of the season when trouncing Michael Holt 5-1 in the quarter-finals of the World Open.
It has been a tournament of narrow escapes for Trump so far, the reigning world champion having to win final-frame shootouts with Sam Craigie and Joe Perry already this week to keep his hopes alive.
However, there were no such alarms in this last-eight encounter, Trump dominating after edging an opening frame in which Holt did have his chance to land the first blow.
A far cry from the form he displayed when beating Barry Hawkins on Wednesday and Ding Junhui on Thursday, Holt never really settled and breaks of 93 and 90 allowed Trump to extend his lead to 3-0 before he came out on the right side of a tight fourth frame.
Holt did momentarily recover after the mid-session interval, a break of 74 finally affording him a moment of cheer, but Trump was in no mood to take his foot off the peddle and he duly wrapped up proceedings with a silky run of 50 in frame six.
Higgins downs two-ton Bingham
Trump will face John Higgins on Saturday after the four-time world champion overpowered Stuart Bingham with a typically rock-solid display.
Higgins was quickly out of the blocks and a break of 66 was enough to see him take the opening frame before he doubled his lead when controlling frame two after Bingham had failed to strike straight back when afforded the chance to get his hand on the table.
A further break of 80 saw Higgins move 3-0 in front before Bingham finally displayed the sort of form that saw him dismantle Mark Selby in brilliant fashion only 24 hours earlier, a 110 break getting him on the board.
Another century in the sixth frame, this time a magnificent total clearance of 138, kept Bingham's hopes alive but that was only after Higgins had moved within one of victory thanks to a run of 57 in frame five.
Despite breaking down when well-set for a century of his own, a break of 70 was enough for Higgins to win the seventh frame and close out the match, sealing an impressive 5-2 victory that certainly didn't flatter him.
Wilson books last-four spot
Kyren Wilson overcame a spirited effort from Zhou Yuelong to set up a semi-final with Thepchaiya Un-Nooh.
Wilson put his superior experience to good use in well-contested affair, repelling a determined challenge from Yuelong who took the opening frame but found himself on the back foot thereafter.
Following that early blow, Wilson responded by stringing a run of three frames together with the aid of breaks of 119 and 64 and although Yuelong twice reduced his arrears to 3-2 and 4-3, Wilson was always able to keep him at arm's length.
A break of 52 in frame eight was enough for Wilson to seal his place in the last four but he will need to raise his game against against the hugely talented Thepchaiya, who came from 4-2 down to beat the in-form David Gilbert.
Breaks of 52, 100, 55 and 62 had put Gilbert on the cusp of victory but he was unable to finish the job as Thepchaiya responded with a thrilling exhibition of break-building, the left-hander rattling off runs of 77, 66 and 96 to pull off one of the biggest wins of his career.