Jack Lisowski to face Neil Robertson in final of China Open

Lisowski was a 10-1 winner over Donaldson to earn his second crack at a ranking final - the first having come in Poland, where he lost to Robertson.

It will be the same opponent standing in his way once more after Robertson beat Belgium's Luca Brecel 10-7.

Lisowski was always in charge on Saturday morning and while Robertson had to work to keep tabs on Brecel, class told after he got level.

The Australian has now made four finals in succession - though whether such rigour proves ideal with the World Championship in mind remains to be seen.

Robertson said: "I think Luca played an amazing match. If he was against anyone but myself, Judd or Ronnie he would probably have won today."

Victory for Lisowski confirmed the seedings for the World Snooker Championship, with the Englishman climbing from 14th to 11th.

That means a potential second-round clash with Mark Selby is off with Brecel the man now filling that position. Lisowski could climb to ninth if securing a first ranking title, which would mean moving into the top half of the draw.

"It was a great day for me," said Lisowski. "I managed to get on top of Scott from the first frame. I just stayed on top the whole game.

"He didn’t have a lot of run, but he is a great player and is really improving. Both of us are quite new to this. I just managed to keep my head down.

"I feel like I’m dealing with situations much better than I was at the start of the year. This season has been a learning curve for me. I’ve had some tough defeats, but I think I’m on top of things now."

Robertson needs to win to secure a place in the top half and avoid Ronnie O'Sullivan until the final - should he finish runner-up, the Australian would likely face either O'Sullivan or Judd Trump in the semi-finals.

David Gilbert is confirmed as the 16th seed and could face Mark Williams, the defending champion, if winning his opening game.