Mark Williams v Wu Yize live stream | World Snooker Championship 2025 preview
Williams has struggled with eyesight problems in recent times (Cody Froggatt/Sportimage Credit: Sportimage Ltd/Alamy Live News)
Mark Williams begins his 27th Crucible campaign when he takes on Wu Yize in the first round of the World Championship on Saturday.
The 50-year-old has been absent from Sheffield on just two occasions since making his debut in 1997, notably lifting the trophy in 2000, 2003 and 2018.
Despite recently entering his sixth decade last month, Williams has demonstrated his ability to still produce the goods at the top end of the sport this season, winning the Champion and Champions and reaching the inaugural Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters final.
However, he recently suggested he would be entering the Crucible this year with limited expectations due to ongoing problems with his eyesight.
Williams trialled contact lenses at the Tour Championship last time out, but was comfortably beaten 10-3 by Ding Junhui in the opening round.
The Welshman has also won just one of his last three matches in Sheffield, so will be keen to address that at the very least.
Standing in his way is a player who has enjoyed a breakthrough season in Wu, back at the Crucible for his second appearance.
The Chinese gave a fairly decent account of himself on debut two years ago, hitting back-to-back centuries during his first-round match against Neil Robertson. However, that was quickly forgotten when the Thunder produced two 146 breaks in the space of three frames to wrap up a 10-3 win.
Runner-up to Robertson at the English Open and compatriot Lei Peifan at the Scottish Open this season, Wu will certainly be returning to Sheffield full of confidence. He certainly earned it, too, recovering from 4-0 down to edge out two-time runner-up Matthew Stevens 10-9 on the blue in the final qualifying round.
The winner of this clash will face either 2013 finalist Barry Hawkins or former Shoot Out champion Hossein Vafaei in the second round.
The match breaks off at 2.30pm BST on Saturday with the opening nine fames, before resuming with a maximum of 10 at the same time on Sunday at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.
How to watch Mark Williams v Wu Yize live stream
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