Strip away the veneer of sophistication from China's most famous snooker star and what you will get is Ding Junhui, all excited and hopeful that he might be able to bump into his all-action idol Jackie Chan when he arrives in town next week for a showdown against the world's top players.
'I admire Jackie Chan and I have probably watched most of his movies. He is the pride of the nation,' says Ding. 'I have still not met him, and I hope I can meet him one day.'
The cue-ball is in the corner of the organisers of the Euro-Asia Master Challenge to be held at the Queen Elizabeth Stadium from Thursday. Ding has a wish. If Jackie Chan is in town, perhaps they might convince him to come and watch one of the most famous sportsmen in China.
Four of Europe's leading players will take on four Asians in an East versus West showdown. The European contingent includes world number one John Higgins, Ken Doherty (number four), Ronnie O'Sullivan (five) and Stephen Hendry (eight). Higgins is the reigning world champion, a mantle all the others have held previously. Ding leads the Asian challenge, which also has Hong Kong's Marco Fu Ka-chun, and Thai duo James Wattana and Supoj Saenla.
Ding is being modest when he describes the Hong Kong kung fu star as 'the pride of the nation', for he, himself, is also held in very high regard back home. Such is his popularity across China, it is estimated more than 100 million viewers switch on CCTV when he addresses the green baize.
Together with NBA star Yao Ming and Olympic hurdler Liu Xiang, Ding is among the most recognisable faces in China. His brand recognition is more remarkable considering snooker is not even an Olympic sport.