This is the hilarious moment a young man watching his pal play pool accidentally caught a wayward cue ball in his bowl of noodles.

Phone footage shows the young man dressed in black sitting by the wall next to a pool table in Harbin, in northern Heilongjiang province, China, and enjoying a bowl of instant noodles.

As he sat facing the table, his friend was readying to strike one of the balls during a game on December 25. However, he hit the cue ball too hard and it went flying off the table.

Unexpectedly, the man seen in the video then extended his arms and caught the flying cue ball with his bowl.

Surprised by his own reflexes, he then jumped up to avoid the splash of hot soup. He looked at his friend in shock, who burst into laughter.

He later told local media: 'I instinctively caught it; it felt bewildering and amusing.'