Michael White did the unexpected when he sealed a last-32 spot, having put up a good fight against Mark Williams. Williams was seemingly condemned to a devastating loss when he was taken out in the first four frames. The former World Champion didn’t give in too easily and tried to stage a comeback, but White was miles ahead of him mentally.
White took the first frame and then recorded a break of 75 in the second to take a 2-0 lead over his fellow countryman. White wasn’t done yet. The Welsh made 52 in what was a tight frame to make it 3-0. For Williams, it was a tunnel he didn’t want to go down through. He was being pummeled left, right, and centre, and no matter how hard he tried, it felt like a case of “so near, yet so far.”
Michael White was leaving nothing to chance against the 2018 World Champion, who surely has the potential to push for a comeback. The former added a break of 81 to make it a 4-0 whitewash in the first mid-session.
Minutes later, Williams looked ready to force a comeback that snooker folks at the Arena wouldn’t dare to forget in years to come. The former Champion took a tense frame that went all the way down to black, reducing the deficit to three.
With that win, he looked to have found his form, hitting a century, his first break of more than 50 in fact. All of a sudden, the scoreboard read 5-2. While there was a potential comeback on the cards for Williams, White was just one frame away from a resounding finish. How realistic is a comeback really? Well, Williams answered that question only minutes later.
Impossible! White was only inches away from the finished line and did excellently well to breast the tape. He deserved the win by all standards and got it. Mark Williams was mildly put, not at his best. He looked out of sorts as he was swept off his boots by a more determined Michael White.
White couldn’t believe his eyes, ears, or indeed any of his senses. Prior to the UK Championship, he hadn’t won a single match all season. Only to record a 6-2 win over a former World Champion like it was test practice.
Roland Arum