Wilson, who reached the final in 2020, came into this contest buoyed by the convincing manner of his 13-8 victory against four-time champion John Higgins in the last eight.
However, he struggled to break free in their first two sessions as Gilbert matched the only seed left in the tournament in almost every department.
Gilbert, a 2019 semi-finalist, produced a sublime 129 break and enjoyed runs of 92 and 106 on Friday afternoon but the world number 31 was unable to replicate that form in the evening session.
A missed black to the left corner was ruthlessly punished by Wilson in the 19th frame and misses on the yellow and brown in the next appeared to jolt Gilbert’s confidence as Wilson grew visibly stronger.
To his credit, Gilbert rallied to end the session on a high note with his 10th century of the tournament, but he will now need a fast start on Saturday if he is to prevent Wilson from claiming the three frames he requires to reach the final.
