Determined Dott digs deep to reach final against Australian Robertson

Runner-up in 2004 and champion in 2006, Dott fell so far in the world rankings he had to go through the qualifying rounds to reach the Crucible and once in Sheffield for the main event he produced shock wins over Peter Ebdon, Stephen Maguire and Mark Allen to reach the last four.

Last night he completed a semi-final win over Selby, who had been priced as tournament favourite prior to their tussle.

Larkhall man Dott has come through tragedy in his private life which led to him being diagnosed with depression, and he fell to 48th in the provisional world rankings in late 2008. But by winning through to the semi-finals he guaranteed himself a return to the top 16, who qualify automatically for ranking events, and now he has a bigger prize in his sights.

In the final today, Dott takes on Robertson, who becomes the first Australian to reach a Crucible final. It was 1975 when an Australian last reached a World Championship final, when Eddie Charlton lost 31-30 to Ray Reardon at Charlton's own club in Melbourne.

The 28-year-old Robertson, also from Melbourne, defeated Ali Carter 17-12 in the semi- finals, but the volcanic ash which closed much of Europe's air space scuppered plans for his mother to cheer him on in Sheffield.

Robertson's Norwegian girlfriend, Mille, is due to give birth today, so there could be a double celebration approaching while his parents await news at home.

Robertson's parents scrimped and saved to finance his snooker career and he is thrilled to have repaid their belief in him, even though at one stage he almost gave up the sport. "I came really close to quitting. I left school to play snooker, but I wasn't as dedicated as I should have been," he added. "I came over here with 500 in my pocket and that was it. I couldn't even afford a waistcoat and had to borrow one from a friend throughout the whole season.

"Looking back at those days and to where I am now it's an incredible feeling and gives me a lot of satisfaction."