Mark Williams v Hossein Vafaei live stream | World Snooker Championship 2025 preview
Williams and Vafaei renew their rivalry at The Crucible (Sipa US / Alamy Stock Photo)
Mark Williams and Hossein Vafaei renew their rivalry when they lock horns in the World Championship second round at The Crucible.
The pair came through tough first-round battles to set up this mouth-watering showdown; Williams recovering from 8-7 down to beat Wu Yize 10-8, and Vafaei overturning a 9-8 deficit to edge out Barry Hawkins in a deciding frame.
It will be the first meeting between the players since their controversial clash at the 2024 World Grand Prix.
There, Vafaei refused to shake hands with Williams following his 4-1 defeat, believing the three-time World champion to have been disrespectful by slapping his knee when at the snookers required stage.
The Welshman had, in fact, done so after missing a pink under the impression his opponent would return to the table to play on for those snookers, only to storm out of the arena.
Williams will continue to be focused on letting his snooker do the talking in his 22nd last-16 appearance in Sheffield, where he is targeting a 12th quarter-final.
The 50-year-old arrived at The Crucible in a difficult spell of form following problems with his eyesight, for which he is set to undergo laser surgery in June.
Nevertheless, Williams opted against wearing his contact lenses during his first-round clash with Wu and, following his victory, is likely to follow suit when he faces the free-scoring Vafaei.
The Iranian, who hit seven century breaks during his two qualifying matches, added a further four as he ousted 2013 finalist Hawkins.
Vafaei now looks to advance to the last eight at The Crucible for the first time, while it would match his best performance of the season, in which he also reached that stage at the World Grand Prix last month.
A quarter-final showdown with either four-time Crucible king John Higgins or Wuhan Open champion Xiao Guodong awaits whoever prevails from this best-of-25 contest.
The match breaks off at 10am BST on Friday with the opening eight frames, while resuming with another eight at 7pm BST, before playing to a conclusion at 2.30pm BST on Saturday at The Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.
How to watch Mark Williams v Hossein Vafaei live stream
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