Williams and Stevens Fly The Flag In Wales
Mark Williams and Matthew Stevens are flying the Welsh flag high in their home tournament as the Welsh Open reaches the quarter final stage in Newport
Mark Williams v Jamie Cope
Williams Whitewash Over Cope Is Not All It Seems
Mark Williams whitewashed Hong Kong's Marco Fu in the first round of this year's Wyldecrest Parks Welsh Open and he did the same to Stoke's Jamie Cope in round two.
But it was not all plain sailing for Cwm's double world champion as Cope had chances to win a couple of frames but didn't take advantage.
Williams' 4-0 victory took less than an hour as he took the first frame with a contribution of 30, followed by a glorious 108 break before digging in to take the third, with a three decent contributions finishing the match off.
Now he is one of the favourites to go all the way and provide Wales with a first winner of their home tournament since 1999 when the left-hander triumphed 9-8 over seven-times world champion Stephen Hendry at Cardiff International Arena.
Williams was keeping his feet on the floor after his victory over Wembley Masters semi-finalist Cope, saying: "I'm just riding the wave."
He added: "I knew going out there that he is not playing well at the moment and struggling with confidence so I knew I had that in my favour and it showed.
"He missed a few balls. He is around the (top) 16 spot and there is a lot of pressure for him to stay in it and stop having to qualify for tournaments."
Williams said that it was not easy, adding: "It looks easy on paper but it was never a 4-0. He could have won two of those easily, the same as Marco Fu could have won one when I played him a couple of days ago. So 4-0 is a bit flattering."
Cope's Wembley Masters journey showed how hard a player he is and Williams knew that, on form, he is a tough nut to crack.
"I have had some hammerings off him," said the left-hander. "He wiped the floor with me in China. I didn't miss one pot and he beat me 5-1. I played him the year after and he has made breaks of 72, 139, 147 and 68 and I beat him 5-3. I know how dangerous he is. He can wipe anybody off the table."
Now Williams is on course for a re-match of that 1999 final with Stephen Hendry, who had to get past his practice partner Stephen Maguire on Thursday night.
However, he is still there to become the first back-to-back ranking tournament winner in the same season for eight years.
He added: "To win any tournament in a season is tough but to win two of them shows you how difficult it is as it has not been done for eight years. I'm still in it and with the quarter-finals to go and playing with a bit of confidence at the moment."
Matthew Stevens v Ryan Day
Stevens Wins A Welsh Derby Cracker
One of the Welshmen had to go out of the tournament and Ryan Day was the one jumping in the car and heading out of the Wyldecrest Parks Welsh Open after former UK and Masters champion Matthew Stevens won a hard fought match in the deciding frame.
But it was a match of twists and turns as the two friends fought tooth and nail for the right to play world number one John Higgins in the quarter-final.
There were kicks, seemingly simple missed pots, brilliant safety and some outstanding shots as Stevens found himself 3-1 ahead and seemingly in sight of victory.
Yet a straight-forward missed black off its' spot in the fifth frame, that the Carmarthen ace would pot ninety-nine times out of a hundred, let Day back in and, after half-an-hour later, they were locked together at 3-3.
But that final frame shoot-out was not going to be an easy one-visit break victory for either man, the way the match was going.
Stevens looked to have clinched it as he kept Day sat in his chair and approached the winning mark with a run of 66. However, he broke down as he found himself awkward on a red to the corner pocket and failed to pot.
It left Day needing all five reds, mostly with blacks, and all the colours to clinch the match by two points.
And he made a fantastic fist of it, playing some seriously tough shots around the black spot, before finding himself on a long yellow to kick-off the clearance of the colours. The pot on the yellow was tremendous but he screwed back too far, got the wrong side of the green and had to play safe.
From there, Stevens held the upper hand in the safety duel and, when the chance came to finish the match off, this time, he grabbed it with both hands.
Stevens said later: "I got in first in the final frame and hit 66. I put him in a lot of trouble and left me bridging horribly on the red. I didn't fancy it at all but I had to go for it.
"Then he made a good clearance to the green and he didn't make it. So fortunately for me, I cleaned up.
"But, up to 3-1, I felt really good. I missed that easy black - I don't know why - and I really struggled from then. I was just really relieved to get over the line."
To go all the way in Newport would also give Stevens a place in the top 16 of the rankings and miss the final qualifiers for the Betfred.com World Championship when the third and final review of the rankings are made after this week's tournament.
Stevens said: "I have lost (in the final qualifiers) in the last couple of years and it is a horrible match to play. You just want to get to the Crucible in your own right.
"But I'm still here, I've got two tough matches and I think I have to win it to get into the top 16. Yet, I'm in the tournament and, as long as you are still in, there is a chance of winning."
Day's chance of reclaiming his own top 16 place before Sheffield are gone. He said: "I'm pleased to be competing again. I have to go to the qualifiers for China and I can't wait to play in matches now where, six months ago, it was the last thing I wanted. I'm far happier with my game."
Allister Carter v Peter Ebdon
Captain Carter Stays On Course
Allister Carter seems to like Newport and the Wyldecrest Parks Welsh Open - but he doesn't know why.
The 31-year-old won the tournament in 2009 with a 9-5 victory over Northern Ireland's Joe Swail and fought well to defend his trophy in 2010 before going down 9-4 to Scotland's John Higgins in the final.
And now he is into the quarter-finals again after taking the scalp of Peter Ebdon by 4-1.
Carter, who has finished his training as an aircraft pilot, flew into a 3-0 lead with breaks of 32, 38, 31 and 64 as Ebdon, who has been seen brushing the table all week and has made a complaint to World Snooker about not having any intervals at the Welsh Open, struggled.
Ebdon took the fourth frame after getting Carter into some trouble but, after breaking down on 40, the Budapest-based ex-world champion let the Essex man in for a frame-winning 74 break.
Carter said later: "The table was playing very heavy and it is strange because it affects the way you play the ball. It would affect Peter more than me, though, because he likes to float everything in.
"It was a win, though, and that's all you can say about it.
"At 3-0 up, I knew Peter would be fighting for it. But I'm in the quarter-final and hope to find a bit of form because it's a while since I've done anything.
"I haven't got a clue why I do well in this tournament. It's not too far from home so I was able to go home after my first match and spend a couple of days there. I got back up here on Wednesday night and I played today and am playing tomorrow so it seems I've found something that works for me."
Ding Junhui v Mark Allen
Allen Left To Rue Missed Chances As Ding Wins Ugly
Mark Allen was left kicking himself as he let a 3-1 lead in the Wyldecrest Park Welsh Open second round slip to lose a quarter-final place that was within his grasp.
And with a player as good as China's Ding Junhui in the opposite chair, then Allen could ill afford to give the reigning Masters champion any help towards the next round.
It was a scrappy affair at times after Allen had hit in a break of 89 in the first frame and then won the second that included seven fouls and a highest break of 25.
Frame three was not much better but it was one that Ding clinched before a 47 in the fourth was enough for Allen to get to within one of victory.
But then the proverbial wheels came off the for the Irishman. Ding took the fifth with breaks of 31 and 38, added an 81 to draw level at 3-3 before rounding it all off with a match-winning 79.
Ding admitted it was not the prettiest of matches as he went back to his hotel for a night's rest before tackling 2009 Welsh Open champion Allister Carter on Friday.
"I didn't play very well. After the first frame, we both played very bad. It was crazy. I'm not happy with that. It didn't happen," said the Chinese number one.
"I tried to concentrate and keep going and trying every shot to get back. If I play like that again, I'm going to lose quickly," he added.
Graeme Dott v Neil Robertson
Dott Knocks Out The World Champion
Reigning world champion Neil Robertson crashed out of the Wyldecrest Parks Welsh Open on Thursday night to Graeme Dott in a match which never really hit the heights.
It was a re-match from the Betfred.com World Championship final last year but this time the Scot took the honours.
While the match on the next table between Stephen Hendry and Stephen Maguire was beginning like a rocket, with Hendry hitting a 147 maximum, neither Robertson nor Dott could get a decent break in their opener as the reds ran awkward on the bottom cushion.
Eventually Robertson grabbed a 51 break to clinch that but it was all he was going to get from the match.
At his best, Dott is fluent and scores heavily but one of his real strengths is that he accepts when he is misfiring, and is prepared to fight it out to get the result. And that is exactly what he did against his Australian opponent.
He hit a 53 in the third and 68 in the fourth, and, when he trapped Robertson in a difficult snooker when 22-0 up, the Aussie tried and failed to get out of the problem seven times and handed Dott the chance to win, which he gladly accepted.
Later the Scot admitted it was a slog that, in years gone by, he would have probably accepted but not now.
He now plays Mark Selby in the quarter-finals and said: "This game was an absolute slog. It just shows you how much I have changed. I would have loved that match three years ago and now I can't stand it.
