Shaun Murphy knocked out of China Open, Mark Selby through

Murphy’s surprise loss came at the hands of Kurt Maflin. Trailing 3-1 and then 4-3 in the last-eight tie, the Norwegian rattled off breaks of 74 and 73 to turn the match around and knock out Murphy.

The performance came completely out of the blue from a player who has not won more than a single match in any ranking event this season - but who has now won five matches in a row to make the semif-finals in Beijing.

"It was a good match and I played solid stuff from 3-1 down," said Maflin.

"I think I'm capable of winning a tournament, and that's what I'm here to do. I've been scoring heavily, I'm happy with the way I'm playing and hopefully I can keep getting stronger."

World champion Selby also recovered from a 4-3 deficit to win the final two frames against fellow Englishman Robert Milkins.

"I feel as if Rob was the better player throughout the match, yet somehow I'm sitting here having won," said Selby.

"It's a shame for Rob that he missed out on an automatic Crucible place, maybe that was in the back of his mind today. But if he plays like that, there's no reason why he can't win three matches to qualify.

"I had a bit of run of the ball today, which was the difference between winning and losing."

Earlier, reigning champion Ding Junhui edged John Higgins 5-4, while Gary Wilson overcame Barry Hawkins to complete the semi-final line-up.

"We both played well," said defending champion Ding. "I tried to make the most of every chance and didn't worry much about the scoreline.

"In the last frame I sat there and watched him play and thought I might not get a chance. Maybe it was luck that changed the outcome. I haven't won a match like that for quite some time."

Ding Junhui (Chn) v Gary Wilson (Eng)

Kurt Maflin (Nor) v Mark Selby (Eng)