Paul Hunter shared the first four frames of his second session with Dubliner Ken Doherty to remain on course for his first Embassy World Championship final at the Crucible Theatre.
Hunter led 6-2 overnight and maintained the four-frame advantage at 8-4 in the best of 33 semi-final.
The dominance of the first session by Hunter was reflected in the bookmakers' odds with Ladbrokes making the Yorkshireman 1-6-on to triumph.
Table fitters had worked overnight to correct the fault which had seen the ball roll off near the brown spot during the first session.
Doherty needed to make early in-roads into Hunter's lead and he took full advantage of his first opportunity when his opponent went in-off into the yellow pocket.
The 1997 champion put together a 62 break and then an impressive long red set up a run of 28 to secure the frame. It was a similar scenario in the next as Hunter again went in-off after potting a long red and Doherty made him pay for his misfortune with a 111 clearance - his fourth ton of the tournament.
Doherty looked full of confidence and had another opportunity handed to him in frame 11 when Hunter for the third time inadvertently sank the cue ball.
But this time he missed a black along the rail with only 10 points on the board. Hunter seized the opportunity, breaking open the pack of reds at an early juncture, and a 50 followed by a 61 clearance re-opened a three-frame advantage for the 24-year-old.
Doherty also paid the penalty in the final frame before the interval for missing a straightforward brown and Hunter made him pay with a 73.
Tournament favourite Mark Williams will resume in a commanding position with a 7-1 lead over Stephen Lee in their semi-final clash this afternoon. Lee was first among the balls on several occasions but failed to capitalise unlike Williams who had breaks of 102, 53 and 63.
A session whitewash had looked on the cards until Lee won the seventh with a total clearance of 140.