O'Sullivan to fight for Masters title against Perry

Ronnie O'Sullivan beat Marco Fu 6-4 to reach his 12th Masters final here on Saturday.

The defending champion will beat the record of six he shares with Stephen Hendry if he beats Joe Perry in Sunday's best-of-21 final.

Perry shocked last year's runner-up Barry Hawkins 6-5 by fighting back from 2-5 down in the day's another semifinal.

Fu made a 141 in the fifth frame and became the new front-runner for the 10,000-pound high break prize.

"It's probably my best win ever considering everything that went on and the way I played, given the stature of the tournament, the atmosphere," said O'Sullivan. "There was a lot of pressure out there and to be able to hold myself together and win was so good. It's one of the best wins of my life.

"Marco's had two fantastic wins here. He was so close to winning that match, he didn't lose out there today. I think he's going to win more tournaments because he's such a good player. He looks so much more aggressive and confident.

"I don't care about the seventh title. I've gone past that. I'm just enjoying myself. I've had a great Saturday afternoon out. Most people are paying to watch that, I'm getting in for free.

"I hope it'll be a fantastic occasion tomorrow."

Fu said: "He played really well. I only played one bad shot in the whole match. Every credit to the greatest player in the game today. You just have to admire it and wish him all the best in the final. Hopefully he can break the record. It was a great match to be involved in."

World number nine Perry reached the final for the first time and will receive a cheque for 200,000 pounds if he lifts the trophy.

The 42-year-old trailed Hawkins 5-2 and needed a snooker in the eighth frame. But he hit back in superb style and finished with a gutsy clearance in the decider.

Perry had knocked out Stuart Bingham, Ding Junhui and Hawkins at snooker's biggest invitation event. Enditem