The 2024 Champion of Champions final will be contested between Mark Williams and Xiao Guodong at the Toughsheet Community Stadium in Bolton on Sunday.
The duo will make maiden appearances in the final of the invitational tournament after beating a couple of two-time former champions in the last four.
On Friday, Xiao continued his remarkable run of improved form this season by outplaying reigning champion Mark Allen with a 6-3 scoreline.
Williams emerged from his fixture in the penultimate round on Saturday courtesy of a 6-2 defeat of Neil Robertson.
The Welshman will bid for his first piece of silverware of the 2024/25 snooker season having previously come so close at the inaugural Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters in Riyadh.
Williams, who turns 50 in a few months, was within a couple of balls of landing that record-equalling £500,000 top prize but eventually missed out on glory in a dramatic deciding frame against Judd Trump.
Xiao, meanwhile, already boasts a trophy from this term following his career breakthrough success at last month’s Wuhan Open.
That victory, coupled with another fine display to reach the semi-finals of the recent International Championship, has seen the 35 year-old become a top-16 member for the first time.
The boost in confidence that the Chinese competitor has received on the back of those positive results has been obvious.
He fought his way back from 3-0 down in both of his opening affairs of this week’s competition where he beat all-time greats Ronnie O’Sullivan and Mark Selby.
In reaching the Champion of Champions final, Xiao has presented himself with the opportunity to become the first player from China to win the prestigious event.
Williams will have his eyes on the £150,000 jackpot as well, however, as the former world number one attempts to add to the Tour Championship title that he won earlier in 2024.
There are no ranking points on offer here, but the Champion of Champions has become one of the more sought-after trophies with the elite field that is always assembled.
Williams has won most other notable titles in the history of the game and a Champion of Champions crown would be a fitting addition to the legend’s collection.
Xiao and Williams have clashed five times on the main tour in all competitions, but their matches have usually been short battles.
Indeed, only two matches have taken place over the best-of-seven frames, with their remaining three battles even shorter than that.
Williams beat Xiao at the WST Pro Series en route to victory in that ranking tournament and boasts a superior 4-1 head-to-head record overall.
Their most recent clash was at last year’s English Open when Williams edged a high-scoring showdown in a deciding frame.
That match took place in the round of 64, so the scenario and the atmosphere will be markedly different for this bout.
Xiao has been a completely transformed force this term, and given the players he has already beaten this week, he should hold little fear of the task at hand.
Either way, it promises to be a thrilling conclusion.
The Champion of Champions final takes place on Sunday over the best-of-19 frames, with sessions beginning at 1pm and 7pm UTC.
2024 Champion of Champions draw
Group 1
Mark Allen 4-2 Igor Figueiredo
Gary Wilson 2-4 Jak Jones
Group 1 Final
Mark Allen 6-4 Jak Jones
Group 2
Judd Trump 4-0 Ding Junhui
Ali Carter 3-4 Neil Robertson
Group 2 Final
Judd Trump 4-6 Neil Robertson
Group 3
Kyren Wilson 4-1 Luca Brecel
Mark Williams 4-1 Bai Yulu
Group 3 Final
Kyren Wilson 5-6 Mark Williams
Group 4
Ronnie O’Sullivan 3-4 Xiao Guodong
Mark Selby 4-2 Shaun Murphy
Group 4 Final
Xiao Guodong 6-5 Mark Selby
Semi-Finals (bo11)
Mark Allen 3-6 Xiao Guodong
Mark Williams 6-2 Neil Robertson
Final (bo19)
Sunday at 1pm and 7pm UTC
Xiao Guodong vs Mark Williams
Click here to view the full updated draw
(snooker.org)
Featured photo credit: WST
Two worthy finalists who have genuinely out performed their rivals this week, and it will hopefully be a great final: with these two it should be an interesting final with a mixture of styles.
Williams the first Welshman to reach this final since the Champion of Champions was revived in 2013.