Masters snooker: Ronnie O'Sullivan routs Ricky Walden 6-0 in under an hour
Ronnie O'Sullivan produced a flawless display to beat Ricky Walden 6-0 in 59 minutes and reach the Masters semi-finals.
Last Updated: 17/01/14 11:43pm
The 'Rocket' was in scintillating form on Friday afternoon, reeling off all six frames in quickfire time to book a last four date with Stephen Maguire.
Remarkably, Walden had led in the opener after a break of 38, but O'Sullivan's frame-winning reply of 79 started a run of 556 points without reply.
That break was sparked by a superb opening red from distance and he followed it up with 88 in the second frame and 72 in the third, the latter after Walden attempted to escape from a snooker and hit the pink.
The frame before the interval was the best of the bunch, a 134 total clearance ensuring an emphatic 4-0 advantage.
And there was no let-up upon the resumption, with 77 to win the first frame back and 56 and 39 in the next to get over the line.
With typical understatement, O'Sullivan told BBC2: "I scored well, I potted some long ones for a change and my safety was okay with a few snookers.
"That's snooker. I've had it numerous times, when you just sit there as a passenger.
"It can be embarrassing but at some point you just go 'well, this guy's on fire', and it's good to watch sometimes."
O'Sullivan faces Maguire in the semi-finals after the Scot upset the form book to beat Australia's Neil Robertson 6-2.
World number one Robertson, the reigning UK champion, soon found himself 3-0 down.
He reduced the deficit to just one frame at 2-3 behind but, with Maguire producing a series of long pots, that was as close as he got.
Robertson must have known it wasn't to be his day when, with a chance to keep the match alive in the eighth frame, he went in-off following a routine pot.
Saturday's other semi-final is an all-English clash between former world champion Shaun Murphy and Mark Selby.