Mark Williams is on the hunt for a first ranking title for nearly seven years.
The Welshman – who last lifted silverware at the German Masters in 2011 – is rolling back the years to compete in his first final in the UK since 2003 and knows he has experience on his side as he faces 17-year-old Yan Bingtao for the right to take home the Northern Ireland Open trophy.
To put the age gap of these two players into perspective, it is worth pointing out that Yan was just three months old when Williams won his first would title back in 2000.
While this final represents a taste of the former glory days for Williams, it also represents a taste of what could be to come in the years ahead for the vastly-promising, talented Yan.
A victory for the young Chinese star feels like it could be a milestone moment in the sport and potentially the first success for a player who will go on to become a modern-day great, but Williams is an established king of the game with a dangerous edge to him for so many reasons.
The two-time world champion is probably the most laid-back player at the very top end of the sport. He doesn’t set himself targets, he is realistic in his expectations and doesn’t put himself under too much pressure.
This is probably proving to be his greatest strength this season and a reason why he has been able to hit such a consistent level of form. It must be extremely liberating to turn up at any event, give it your all and while he knows he would love to win, he is able to walk away quite content if he doesn’t.
This attitude will help him to play the balls in this final rather than the occasion. Not only does Williams bring a wealth of superior experience into this final but it’s true to say that this match is much bigger to Yan than it is to Williams.
Yan is chasing his first ever ranking title and with it has the chance to become the youngest ever winner, which will bring an added pressure upon his performance. There’s nothing to suggest Yan can’t handle this of course, but Williams is free from all this. He’s been there, seen it and done it. He has nothing to prove, no boxes left to tick and as a result can play with greater freedom.
Saying all this, Williams deserves a huge amosunt of credit for his performances this week. While he’s been knocking balls around the table in Belfast, he has also been dealing with some rather uncertain times off it with his wife suffering from health problems. She has been in and out of hospital leaving him with a dilemma of whether to continue playing or make a premature return to be by her side.
Strangely, these kinds of circumstances can arguably be a helpful influence for Williams with his snooker. Moments like this have a habit of putting things into a stark perspective and an emphasis of the point that snooker isn’t the most important thing in the world, it has likely allowed Williams to play without the result being of any real significance.
Despite all this, you don’t reach the levels of the game like Williams has without being a fierce competitor and when this final gets under way he’ll be as determined as ever to land the title.
We are assured of a great storyline no matter what way this goes and it will be intriguing to see it all unfold.
