It was a particularly sweet win over Chang, given Murphy had been on the end of a 4-0 defeat himself earlier this year. The rising Chinese star beat Murphy at the Welsh Open, with Chang having left a lasting impression on the 2005 world champion.

So much so, heading into the contest, Murphy had suggested Chang could buy his nickname off him, if he wished. Murphy is nicknamed ‘The Magician’, but he joked that because of the way Chang is able to sink balls at the table, it would be more suited to him.

He remarked: “I’m going to go for a walk and coffee and leave them two boys to it! Let them fight it out. Whichever one comes through, all you can do is watch in total awe with both of them. Nobody knows Wu’s game better than me.

“He’s [Wu Yize] beaten me the last few times, obviously the World final being the marquee match. Chang Bingyu seems to clear the table [every time]. If he pots one, he seems to pot them all.

“My nickname is the Magician at the moment but I could sell it him if he wants! He just makes all the balls disappear. I dunno, he’s just incredible. Whoever comes through I’ll do my best, try my best as I always do, and hope that I get the win.”

The fighting talk worked a treat, given Murphy defeated Chang to secure his last-four berth. However, the 44-year-old admitted his performance wasn’t as strong as it seemed.

“Ronnie and I tried to outmanoeuvre each other. I think when two players who are…I wouldn’t say evenly matched. But when you’ve got such respect for each other, it was always going to be more of a safety affair I thought. I wasn’t surprised with how that match went.

“Then tonight, we joked about it before, but nobody knows the power of Chang Bingyu better than me. I knew I had to keep him in the long grass tonight, and for the most part, I thought I did my job well.

“I had a little chuckle to myself when I scored more than one point, which is all I got in the Welsh Open earlier in the year. And it was a good one!”