World Snooker Championship 2023: Luca Brecel holds nerve to see off Mark Williams challenge and book quarter-final spot

After breaking his Crucible duck at the sixth time of asking in round one, Luca Brecel powered into the quarter-finals of the World Championship with a 13-11 victory over Mark Williams.

The Belgian changed his approach for 2023, as he told Eurosport after his 10-9 win over Ricky Walden that he had spent more time throwing darts and playing video games with his friends than on the practice table.

If you find a method that works it’s advisable to stick to it. Whether he spent only 15 minutes a day on the practice table in the lead up to the clash with Williams is not clear, but whatever approach he took it paid off as he held his nerve under huge pressure to take out the three-time champion.

Brecel eked out a 9-7 advantage on the back of some brilliant play in the second session, and the cushion proved invaluable as he kept Williams at bay on a high-pressure Friday evening.

Williams won the final frame of the previous session and looked well set to carry on the momentum, but got very close to a black and after failing to get the potting angle, he left it in the jaws. There was just enough of a gap for Brecel to edge a red past the black and he went on to clear to steal the frame with a break of 71.

It was Williams’ turn to punish a Brecel error in the 18th, as the Welshman seized on a simple missed brown to get back within two.

Despite taking his first frame of the final session, there were concerns for Williams supporters as he was seen wincing, grimacing and stretching as if he had tweaked something. 48-year-old bodies are not as supple as they once were.

After the shock of missing a simple brown in the previous frame, Brecel hit back with to take the 19th.

Brecel got in again in the 20th, but suffered a slight kick which sent a red to bottom left off target. Williams ensured it was a costly kick as he knocked in a couple of stunning reds, one down the left rail and another to the bottom right, to get back within two at the final interval.

Williams’ only train of thought was attacking snooker and he was rewarded for his endeavour by taking the 21st on the back of a series of good pots.

Williams had been moving somewhat gingerly on Friday evening, but he rose from his seat in the 22nd with a bit of spring after an error from Brecel.

It was a forced error by an excellent snooker from Williams, but the Belgian got his escape completely wrong and it proved costly as the Welshman picked off a half-century break to level the match.

Brecel was firmly under the pump, but responded in stunning fashion to hit back and edge in front again – and within one frame of the match.

Black and pink were tied up, meaning Brecel had to feed off blues and baulk colours. He was totally unfazed in picking off a superb 84.

Williams wobbled a red in the jaws of the bottom right from distance in the 24th frame, and it proved to be his final act as Brecel gobbled up a winning break of 67 to book his place in the quarter-finals – with Ronnie O’Sullivan or Hossein Vafaei to come next.

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