Home favourite Ding Junhui is through to the quarter-finals of the Shanghai Masters after beating Mark Allen 6-3 on Tuesday.

The Chinese number one was looking to continue his momentum from last week’s Six-red World Championship where he reached the final, but he was in danger of disappointing his supporters as, at one stage, he trailed Northern Irishman Allen 3-1 during their second round match.

However, the sixth seed found his best form at just the right time, as he rattled off five frames in a row, a run that included breaks of 138, 90, 88 and 75 to claim victory.

Ding was certainly pleased with how he played during the second half of the match, as he felt he did not give Allen any opportunities once he got to the table.

“I played well in the second half of the match and played a very aggressive game,” Ding was quoted as saying by World Snooker. “I created chances with my long potting and put pressure on my opponent. It was one visit snooker. I wasn’t thinking during the match so I managed to keep a quick rhythm. I’m happy with the win.”

Ding, who is looking to win the Shanghai Masters for the third time, will now take on world number one Mark Selby in the last eight and he admits he will be in for a tough match against the man who beat him in the 2016 World Championship final.

“I can’t figure out what strategy to use against Mark Selby,” Ding added. “It is always him using strategy against everyone else.”