Matt Selt has credited his practice sessions with the likes of John Higgins, Ronnie O’Sullivan and Judd Trump for his shock run at the Scottish Open this week.
The world number 38 is into the semi-finals in Edinburgh thanks to impressive wins over Ryan Day and the Chinese trio of He Guoqiang, Wu Yize and Jiang Jun.
He meets Chris Wakelin in the final four on Saturday afternoon as he looks to reach a third ranking final and his first since 2022.
It has been a disappointing season so far for the 40-year-old but he could end 2025 on a serious high by claiming a second ranking title, after his first came at the 2019 Indian Open.
Selt admits he has been a long way from his best for much of the season, but took a trip to Scotland to see the Wizard of Wishaw in order to get back on track.
Now based in Dubai, where O’Sullivan and Trump also live, Selt feels he is feeling the benefit of practicing with some of the greats of the game.
‘For the last five or six months I’ve been all over the place,’ Selt told World Snooker Tour. ‘At the start of this week I went from Blackpool to play John Higgins for a couple of days. That was fantastic for me and I just want to say thank you to John. Without that I would have probably been beaten and gone home.
‘Just being in John’s company is great for me. I’ve always looked up to him. He has been my hero since I was a young boy, for him to take the time and play with me over those couple of days speaks volumes of the man. He has always bent over backwards to help me out. It was fantastic for me and raises my spirits.
‘I’ve been fortunate to practise with Ronnie and Judd in Dubai over the last couple of months. Practising with the best is something people dream of doing.’
Selt is not getting carried away, though, suggesting he has ‘no chance’ of lifting the Stephen Hendry Trophy, despite being in the semis.
‘No chance. I’m just concentrating on pulling my cue back the desired amount,’ he said after beating Jiang in the quarter-finals. ‘The rest of it is falling into place.
‘Luckily enough I’ve made the semis and it will be interesting to see what happens tomorrow but I don’t think it will happen. I’ll keep trying my best but this season has said I won’t win tomorrow. That is probably what is going to happen.
‘To be in the semi-finals is instant feedback on what we are trying to do (technically). I felt really tight and snatchy when I was trying to get over the line, but that is something I will work on before tomorrow.
‘I was pretty pleased with how I played today. I probably could have been 4-0 up at the interval, but I think he let me off the hook. After the interval, at 3-1 up, it was about keeping my cool and seeing the game out. I thought I played pretty well and I kept aggressive.’
In the other semi-final Mark Allen takes on Chang Bingyu, with the young Chinese star in his first semi-final after beating Mark Selby in the quarter-finals.
Selby was coming off wins at the Champion of Champions and UK Championship, clearly the form player on the planet.
For Chang to beat world number two Kyren Wilson in the last 16 and then Selby in the quarters shows the superb level he is performing at.
‘I actually didn’t think that I can beat him today because he’s been playing unbelievably well recently and I lost badly in our previous meeting,’ said Chang. ‘So this time I would be glad to take even one frame. Then I won the first frame and it helped me relax.’
The 23-year-old has been impressive this season in his return from a match-fixing ban, climbing the rankings at a rapid rate.
