Frustrated Brecel swipes away cue ball as Si takes control of semi-final

The 'Belgian Bullet', ranked 70 places above his Chinese opponent, conceded the opening frame of the second session after missing the green with a tricky shot.

In dismay, Brecel dragged the cue across the table causing the cue ball to flick off the cushion and fly into the crowd, with referee Rob Spencer urging him to calm down.

Brecel soon found himself 9-4 down in the best-of-33 encounter with Si dominating the opening five frames with breaks of 52, 89, 58 and 112.

The 28-year-old could only hit one half-century in reply as he struggled to cope with Si's dominance.

Si has taken this year's World Championship by storm and was in no mood to let up to put himself in total control ahead of their evening session.

"Luca has been put under pressure and his safety play is letting him down, but it is understandable because he is not getting the table time," six-time world champion Steve Davis told the BBC.

"What Si is doing is mesmerising and clinical. He doesn't seem hurried and he is a predator at the moment."