World Snooker Championship: Brecel fightback frustrates Si Jiahui’s bid to reach final at the Crucible
- Belgian Luca Brecel wins five frames in a row to stay alive in semi-final at 14-10 down
- China’s Si Jiahui had earlier flown into an 11-5 lead and seemed destined to reach final at first attempt
Belgium’s Luca Brecel threatened another remarkable comeback win as he prevented China’s Si Jiahui from reaching snooker’s World Championship final with a session to spare.
The 20-year-old Si, bidding to become the youngest finalist at Sheffield’s Crucible Theatre and the first debutant world champion since Terry Griffiths back in 1979, surged into an 11-5 lead after play resumed Friday.
Brecel, however, also aiming to reach his first world final, ended the day 14-10 behind after winning five frames in a row.
Si still needs just two more frames to clinch victory in the best-of-33 contest.
But with the 28-year-old Brecel having won seven successive frames in a stunning come-from-behind win over reigning champion Ronnie O’Sullivan in the quarter-finals, this last-four clash is now back in the balance.
No Chinese player has yet won the world title, although Ding Junhui was beaten in the 2016 final by England’s Mark Selby, now involved in a gritty semi-final against Mark Allen.