In the early morning of February 10, Beijing time, the first quarter-final of the 2022 Snooker Players Championship ended, and England player Richie Walton staged a reversal in the case of 2-5 behind, defeating three-time world champion Mark Williams 6-5 and reaching the final four in two consecutive ranking matches.
The tournament is the third time Wharton has reached the semi-finals of the ranking tournament this season, after he had a record of four at the Northern Ireland Open last October and the German Masters two weeks ago. This is also the best year in 2016 and 2017 when Wharton, whose performance was seriously affected by a low back injury, performed in the professional arena. The three-time ranking champion is expected to move further from his current world no. 18 position.
24-time ranking champion Williams, despite his high-quality three-stroke performance, failed to replicate the magical journey of reaching the final in a single-time limited time tournament. After taking a 2-1 lead, Williams blasted out 107 points and 102 points to break the 100, and Walton countered with a single 123 points, but Williams won another set and won 5-2 to get the match point.
Walton, whose life was hanging in the balance, then launched a Jedi counterattack, narrowing the gap into one set with a single score of 65 and 80 points. Williams had a chance to end the game in the 10th set, but lost the coffee ball during the clearance and was dragged into the decider by Walton. Walton scored the first 58-point shot in the 11th inning, and Williams won the game again with a brilliant bench hand, but missed the last red ball to give up the victory.
Wharton will face the winner between China's Yan Bingtao and England's Hawkins in the semi-finals.
"After playing the last game, there was only relief left." After the 39-year-old Walton reversed successfully, he said, "To be honest, I felt like my life was hanging on the line throughout the game, and I was so uncomfortable when the last red ball was scored by him, and I felt that this loss would be very difficult to accept. Thankfully he didn't score, and I was lucky. ”
"These games will make you strong. If I lose this game, it's another experience and I'll go through it again. You have to keep trying to keep giving. This time I'm on the side of the winner, and it's stronger in terms of mindset and emotional control. ”
"Barry (Hawkins) and Yan Bingtao are strong opponents and every player in this tournament is a very good player. Yan Bingtao is the Masters champion, and Barry has always been very good. It's another tough game for me. ”