Ronnie O'Sullivan beats Kyren Wilson to reach first final of season

The five-times world champion was never at his brilliant best against an opponent he demolished 9-2 in the final of last season's English Open, but the turning point came when he won the 13th frame on the black.

After O'Sullivan missed an easy blue to the green pocket, Wilson could not pot the simple blue he needed for a 7-6 lead as the Chigwell man returned to the table to clear blue, pink and black to pinch the frame with tension palpable in a packed arena.

It was all O'Sullivan after the mid-session break as runs of 88, 60 and 84 helped him ease into the final where he will face either Ding Junhui or Barry Hawkins on Sunday for a £200,000 first prize.

Remarkably, it is O'Sullivan's first competitive action of the season at a tournament he won last November when it was a ranking event.

Breaks of 62 and 75 saw Kettering's Wilson forge a 2-0 advantage before O'Sullivan clicked into gear with knocks of 55, 52 and a lovely 135 helping him hit back for a 5-4 advantage after the afternoon session in Shanghai.

Wilson restored parity at 5-5 with a 62 only for a quickfire 83 the ideal response from O'Sullivan.

O'Sullivan missed several balls in seeing Wilson level at 6-6 before he pinched the pivotal 13th frame by a point to swing the momentum firmly back in his favour.