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It was the perfect start for Zhao as he bids to become China's first world champion and only the third player from outside the UK to win the title since 1997.

That encounter was watched by a reported television audience of 110 million people in the country and since then the nation's hopes of a first world champion have largely rested on the shoulders of Ding, who was runner-up to Mark Selby in 2016.

Williams will now face China's Zhao Xintong in the first world final to be contested by two left-handed players.

The midfielder was named in Uefa's team of the tournament in France, and then helped Wales qualify for the next European Championship as well as a first World Cup in 64 years.

This is far from the first time a move away from Sheffield has been mooted, or that similar messages have come from Matchroom, yet the 50th anniversary of its first World Championship could well mark a farewell to the city.