Scott Donaldson was the most surprised man in Cardiff after one of his best-ever performances saw the Scot blitz his way to a maiden ranking semi-final at the Coral Welsh Open.

Embarking on his inaugural last-eight tie, the Perth potter made the most of playing in front of the Eurosport TV cameras to deliver a masterclass against Zhou Yuelong of China – wasting little time securing a 5-0 whitewash, now set to face Judd Trump in Saturday’s first semi-final.

That was despite making just one break of 50 in the match, opening the encounter with a visit of 68, as his safety game well and truly came to the fore in the Cardiff Motorpoint Arena.

 “For me, it’s normally 4-3 and 5-4 so I don’t know where something like that has come from – I didn’t expect that myself,” said the 22-year-old.

“I was just happy to win, I felt really nervous but I had a good break in that first frame which is really important, that really helped and that frame is probably the reason I’ve won.

“I didn’t make any big breaks in the match but I did what I needed to do, I’ve played a lot of matches on TV recently without having done too well in them, but it’s good to know that I am capable of doing that.”

Donaldson now goes on to face 2011 UK champion Trump for a place in the final, only prevailing against his clash against Barry Hawkins from the very last black.

Trump had raced into a 3-1 lead come the mid-session interval, but breaks of 52, 76 and 58 saw the Hawk come roaring back to just one frame from victory.

But it was the former world No.1 who held his nerve to take the final two frames, potting the final black to confirm his place in a second Coral Welsh Open semi-final.

Tonight’s other tie will see Robert Milkins face Stuart Bingham, with the latter in particular full of relief at scraping his way past Stuart Carrington.

Carrington had not previously reached a ranking last eight, but made things difficult for the world No.2 reeling off three consecutive frames.

That came after a superlative start for Bingham, with breaks of 103, 68 and 70 opening up the contest as the Grimsby potter scored just three points in the first four frames.

But despite the fightback, it was Bingham left celebrating a 5-3 victory and counting his lucky stars that his time in Wales is not over quite yet.

“Those first four frames were perhaps the best I’ve felt for a year, I was very comfortable, but after the break I was missing a few,” he said.

“I was over the moon to get over the line, I’m in the semi-finals and I’ve got as much chance as the other three.

“There were a few nerves, I landed on nothing when going into the pack and he’s made some good clearances to get to 4-3. I was lucky to get over the line.”

But it was easier going for Milkins however, with visits of 71, 54 and 63 helping him to a 5-2 victory over Kurt Maflin.

Watch the Scottish Open LIVE on Eurosport 1 and Quest, featuring daily studio analysis from Ronnie O'Sullivan, Jimmy White and Neal Foulds.