UK Championship review: Ding Junhui beats Ronnie O'Sullivan in York

The Chinese star, mentored by O'Sullivan throughout his career, has been struggling to piece together the game which saw him win this title for a second time in 2009 and had been given little chance of ending the drought this week.

But following some strong performances in the earlier rounds, the 32-year-old showcased his trademark cue-ball control, devastating long potting and ruthless ability to take a chance as he took a high-scoring encounter in which more than half of the 10 frames were won in a single visit.

Ding was 3-0 up in the blink of an eye, scoring 272 unanswered points and pinning O'Sullivan to his chair thanks to breaks of 81, 52 and 110.

O'Sullivan needed to take the final frame of the first session and that he did with a 78 break, only for Ding to restore his advantage upon the resumption after his opponent failed to take advantage of a massive fluke.

There were signs, though, that O'Sullivan was ready to take his next opportunity and he did so in style, breaks of 77, 107 and 124 levelling the scores and 4-4 and seemingly breaking the resistance of an opponent low on confidence.

But with both players now missing balls which had gone in the centre of the pocket at the start of the match, it was Ding who took the tight frames, capitalising on a shocking missed red with a 54 break in frame nine.

That put Ding within one, and while he needed two bites of the cherry, a sensational pink paved the way for a match-winning contribution in the following frame, securing his fourth victory over O'Sullivan and perhaps the most surprising at least in manner if not scoreline.

Defeat for O'Sullivan follows those of Judd Trump and Neil Robertson, and hands the likes of Ding, John Higgins, Mark Allen and Mark Selby the chance to remind us that there's no duopoly here in a sport packed with talent.

Ding's own talent had for so long appeared lost. On this form, he'll prove a match for any one of the above.

"I’m just pleased to have been able to get four frames out of the wreckage," said O'Sullivan. "It could have easily been a mauling.

"I did well to get it back to 4-4 and had a few chances but I didn’t take them at vital times. It’s swings and roundabouts out there – you can’t pot everything all the time.

"Ding played a great match, he found his form when he needed it and he deserved his victory. He still missed some balls but I didn’t make it particularly difficult for him.

"It was an open game but he took his chances when it counted. I think he could go on and win from here, but equally there are so many strong players left in the tournament that I won’t be surprised whoever comes out on top."

Ding was delighted to reach the quarter-finals, where he'll meet compatriot Liang Wenbo.

"I played really well at the start. I did well today. Normally he doesn't miss those easy shots - today it made the difference."

Asked when he'd last played this well, Ding was honest in replying, "I can't remember!"

On the other table during the afternoon session, Nigel Bond produced his second inspired comeback of the week to beat a stunned Gary Wilson 6-5.

Wilson, a World Championship semi-finalist in the spring, looked set to win a scrappy game with something to spare when taking a commanding 5-2 lead.

But Bond, who had struggled for any fluency early on, found enough to capitalise on a string of nervous mistakes from his opponent to conjure a remarkable victory having been backed at 45/1 in-running.

The 54-year-old had been around the same odds when trailing Judd Trump 3-1 on Monday and now finds himself in the quarter-finals, 30 years after turning professional.

He will face Mark Allen for a place in the semi-finals, after the Northern Irishman came through a tight contest with Kurt Maflin 6-5.

Finally, Stephen Maguire beat Michael White 6-4 to book a clash with Matthew Stevens, who overcame Mark Selby 6-5 in a game which ran long past midnight.

Stevens, who claimed the sole ranking title of his career so far at the event in 2003, had shown glimpses of his best form en route to the last 16 at the York Barbican, and counted on all of his experience to edge past three-time world champion Mark Selby.

Having taken an encouraging 3-1 lead in the early stages, Stevens was pegged back by Selby, who looked poised to scrape through when taking a 5-4 lead before losing two tight frames at the end of an exhausting match.

Watch the UK Championship live on Eurosport and Eurosport Player with analysis from Ronnie O’Sullivan and Jimmy White.