Shaun Murphy hailed 'the best break I have ever made' after he downed Fan Zhengyi 10-9 in a Crucible classic at the World Championship.
Murphy came to the table 36 points behind in the deciding frame, but somehow developed the last two reds that were tied up on the bottom cushion before carving out a match-winning run of 50 in front of an engrossed Crucible crowd.
With Judd Trump having earlier concluded his 10-5 win over Gary Wilson, Murphy and Fan had the theatre to themselves and those watching were treated to an epic finale.
It was a match that always promised to go the distance, Murphy never able to pull clear clear and then forced to brace himself when Fan controlled frame 18 to force a decider.
A tough miss to centre from Fan just as he was closing in on victory would provide one final twist and a lifeline that Murphy grasped with both hands.
He told World Snooker Tour afterwards: "I can't believe I won the match from that position, the way the balls were.
"It's the best break I have ever made, given what was at stake, and I am so proud.
"The most nerve-racking thing I have done outside snooker was my driving test and this was 50 times worse.
"I have no idea how I did it. I was preparing my losing speech.
"Fan played a great match and he had more than a foot in the last 16. I didn't want to be the first seed to lose."
Ronnie O'Sullivan dominated the opening session of his first-round clash with China's He Guoqiang in Sheffield.
The 50-year-old, who is chasing a record-breaking eighth Crucible crown, blasted out of the blocks by winning the first five frames of the match before ending the session with a 7-2 advantage.
O'Sullivan only needs three fames for victory when the match resumes on Wednesday afternoon and it would take a highly improbable comeback from the Chinese debutant to stop him.
The Rocket, who will play John Higgins in the second round should he polish off this win, was criticised for missing Friday's press conference and photo shoot ahead of the World Championship but he did speak to the BBC before his match, saying: "A lot of people will say I'm rusty, that's why I said 'Rusty Ron', I'm quite happy being called that.
"It doesn't take me a lot of practice and I don't need to play a lot of tournaments to win and play well."
O'Sullivan has only played in three ranking events in 2026 but in one of those he reached the final of the World Open in China last month, making an historic 153 break along the way.
Elsewhere, Wu Yize completed his 10-2 triumph over Lei Peifan, while Chris Wakelin moved 5-4 ahead of Liam Pullen.