World No.4 Fan Zhengdong of China showed few signs of vulnerability when he sent German veteran Timo Boll crashing out of the men's singles quarter-finals at the World Table Tennis Championships here on Saturday.
The victory secured Fan a berth in the semi-finals where he will play against World No.1 and compatriot Ma Long, reports Xinhua.
It was a close match against Boll but the 18-year-old Fan raised his game at crucial moments, edging past Boll 12-10, 11-9, 8-11, 11-7, 13-15, 11-7.
Fan, who rose to fame with his triumph at last year's Youth Olympics, also reached the men's doubles final with partner Zhou Yu.