Ronnie O’Sullivan beat Shaun Murphy 6-2 to reach his 14th Masters final and close in on a record-extending eighth title.
The world number one took the first two frames and the fourth to lead 3-1 after Murphy compiled a superb 131 break.
While another Murphy century brought him within a frame, O’Sullivan then went through the gears with runs of 90, 71 and 62 as he sealed his victory.
O’Sullivan will now face either Mark Allen or Ali Carter in Sunday’s final.
As at the UK Championship in December, O’Sullivan, 48, now has his sights on the £250,000 top prize after a five-year absence from the showpiece match.
Already the tournament’s youngest winner almost 29 years ago, he could now become its oldest too, eclipsing Stuart Bingham, who won his only Masters title, aged 43, in 2020.
“At the start there were a few mistakes but I cleaned it up a little bit – and I need to do that these days, because I can’t pot as well as these guys but I can make breaks among the balls and make up for it that way,” O’Sullivan told Sport.
“I don’t feel that old. I feel young in my mind. I feel a lot younger round the table when I play these younger players. They look old and their brains are quite slow. I still feel my brain is pretty quick round the snooker table, which is enough.
“They need to get their acts together because I am going blind, have got a dodgy arm and they still can’t beat me.”
