MARK SELBY produced the goods when it mattered the most after he defeated Marco Fu in an epic contest to reach the World Championship final.

Mark Selby. Picture by Monique Limbos

The Jester from Leicester secured a place in his second Crucible final in three years after beating the Hong Kong ace 17-15.

The world number one now stands one more victory away from winning the World Championship for a second time after he memorably beat five-times winner Ronnie O’Sullivan two years ago.

Standing in his way this year will be China’s number one star Ding Junhui who is bidding to become the first Asian player to lift the World Championship trophy in the history of the sport.

Ding reached the final after beating Alan McManus 17-11 earlier today (Saturday).

But Selby’s journey to the final proved to be more on the difficult road path after coming through a close semi-final tie against Fu.

Throughout the match the pair struggled to hit their best form but saved their best for the final session when both of them played quality snooker to make for a thrilling finish to a tight match.

Whenever Selby took the lead throughout the day, Fu was always quick to respond but from 15-15 the Leicester born star managed to claw out victory and deny his opponent a first final appearance.

Selby sealed the win in the 32nd frame which lasted for more than an hour after Fu failed to get out of a tough snooker during a critical stage of the frame.