England’s Allister Carter booked his place in the semi-finals of the World Grand Prix after two superb wins on Thursday afternoon.

The 39-year-old had beaten Martin O’Donnell in the first round and then faced a match against Mark Allen in the second round.

A break of 85 from Allen saw him take the lead before Carter won the next three frames to move into a commanding position.

Allen then decided to concede the last frame, much to the surprise of Carter.

He told World Snooker: “It was a win to 3-1, but Mark conceded there. You never want to win like that. I feel for him because he is the player in form. He just lost his head for a little while. We have all done it and it is so easy to do.

“I was just sitting there and he has come and shook my hand. I asked him if he was sure and he just said he wanted to get out of there.”

Carter then beat David Gilbert in his quarter-final clash, with a 5-1 scoreline catching the eye.

His reward is a match against China’s Xiao Guodong after he beat teenage star Yuan Sijun.

Yuan had knocked out Mark Williams and Stephen Maguire on his way into the last eight, but was unable to find a way through on Thursday.

Xiao is two wins away from his first career ranking title. He reached the final of the 2013 Shanghai Masters and 2017 Shoot Out, but was runner-up both times.

Chelmsford’s Carter is aiming for the fifth ranking title of his career – and first since the 2016 World Open.

Carter is the 1.67 favourite for the clash while Xiao is a 2.15 outsider.