Ronnie O'Sullivan's hopes of an eighth world snooker title were ended in a stunning 13-10 quarter-final defeat by Belgium's Luca Brecel at The Crucible on Wednesday.
England's O'Sullivan, the holder, was 10-6 in front heading into the afternoon session but the 28-year-old Brecel reeled off seven successive frames to seal a huge upset victory.
With O'Sullivan struggling with his game, Brecel scored breaks of 112, 64, 72, 61, 78 and 63 to seize control.
Brecel will become the first Belgian to reach the final if he can get by either Anthony McGill or Si Jiahui in the semis.
O'Sullivan was magnanimous in defeat, saying: "He played unbelievable. He is such a good player and I love watching him.
"He is such a dynamic player and... probably the most talented snooker player I have ever seen.
"I would love to go and see him win it just for snooker because that is how the game should be played."
Northern Ireland's Mark Allen also reached the semi-finals with a 13-10 victory over Jak Jones.
Al Ain crushed 10-man Yokohama F Marinos 5-1 in the second leg of the Asian Champions League final on Saturday to register a 6-3 aggregate win and their first continental title in 21 years.
Fourteen-time French Open champion Rafa Nadal said there was still a chance this year's tournament in Paris may not be his last in comments ahead of his tough opener against fourth seed Alexander Zverev.
Outgoing Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez said he was proud of his achievements with the club and was looking forward to being a fan again as he prepares to coach his final game against Sevilla.
World number one Novak Djokovic does not consider himself a favourite ahead of his title defence at the French Open, which begins with a first-round match against local hope Pierre-Hugues Herbert on Sunday.