Germany's Simon Rosner ended local hero Abdullah Al Muzayen's giant-killing run in the Jena International Championship when he beat the Kuwaiti qualifier to reach the final of the PSA World Tour Challenger 15 squash event at Qadsia Sporting Club in Hawally, Kuwait.
The 23-year-old left-hander, ranked outside the world's top 100, defeated No2 seed Farhan Mehboob in the opening round - but it was a match too far for the top-ranked Kuwaiti when he faced German number one Rosner.
The third seed from Paderborn, ranked 33 in the world, battled for 34 minutes to overcome Al Muzayen 11-7, 11-9, 11-4 to reach the tenth PSA Tour final of his career, but his first this year.
Rosner will face favourite Aamir Atlas Khan after the 20-year-old Pakistani, ranked 29 in the world, beat Egyptian teenager Ali Farag 11-9, 9-11, 11-9, 11-6.
Farag, an unseeded 19-year-old from Cairo, made his breakthrough in the previous round when he ousted fourth-seeded compatriot Omar Abdel Aziz.
Atlas Khan, eager to reclaim his status as Pakistan's top-ranked player, is marking the ninth Tour final of his career, but his first for exactly a year.
RESULTS: PSA Challenger 15 Jena International, Hawally, Kuwait
Semi-finals:
[1] Aamir Atlas Khan (PAK) bt Ali Farag (EGY) 11-9, 9-11, 11-9, 11-6 (49m)
[3] Simon Rosner (GER) bt [Q] Abdullah Al Muzayen (KUW) 11-7, 11-9, 11-4 (34m)