Kyren Wilson perplexed by ‘crazy’ phenomenon as ‘Ding curse’ strikes again at Shanghai Masters – ‘It’s a mad stat’

However, Wilson reeled off six frames in a row to book a place in the final against fellow Englishman Ali Carter and lengthen a remarkable run involving one of Zhao’s compatriots.

When asked about the perplexing statistic after his win, Wilson said: “That’s crazy. I did hear that. It’s a mad stat, I don’t know what it is.”

“Maybe Ding Junhui is so good he takes it out of you when you have to beat him. Who knows, it’s a crazy stat. I’m sure Ding enjoys it!”

Wilson’s statement 10-5 win means he will face Carter in Sunday’s best-of-21 frame final looking to reclaim the first ranking title of his career and a £210,000 prize.

“It’s been crazy. I think Mark Allen dropped out, which allowed Ali to squeeze into the Shanghai Masters,” Wilson said.

“He has probably come here with a little bit of a free hit, a clear mind. He has battled through some really tough deciding matches and that’s what Ali does best.

“He’s a fantastic match player, a very gritty, determined character. I’m going to have to really dig in tomorrow and play certainly some of the best snooker I’ve played in the last 18 months. Hopefully I can keep up that standard.”

Since 2018, the Shanghai Masters has not been a ranking event but a non-ranking invitational.

Wilson sees it as one of the most important events of the season in China, where snooker is taking ever-greater strides after Zhao’s world title win.

“It seems to be getting bigger and bigger every year. Off the back of Zhao Xintong winning the World Championship, there seems to be more of an air of expectation around snooker now and a bit more of a boom in the market,” Wilson said.

“It’s really important for me and my career, the position I’m in at the moment, to try and make the most of that. The Shanghai Masters is the showpiece event in China nowadays, so 10 years on it would be lovely to repeat that win.”

Wilson showed his own former world champion qualities in a dominant evening session where breaks of 70, 101 and 51 helped him to a whitewash 6-0 session.

“The crowd were obviously massively on Zhao’s side, he’s a local hero if you like,” Wilson said.

“I knew it was going to be tough but managed to settle quite early in the game and find my feet, find a little bit of rhythm. Zhao managed to pip the lead to go 5-4.

“It was just about going back to the hotel, resetting, recharging, and coming out firing this evening.”