By Elliott West
“I can’t pot three balls on the bounce but I am still here, still fighting.”
Mark Williams
Introduction
The day has finally arrived and we now know who will slug it out for the honour of receiving the British Open trophy and a hefty cheque for £100,000. In the end, the two best players were Gary Wilson who managed to defeat Elliot Slessor in a close match 4-3 and Mark Williams who had a more convincing victory against Jimmy Robertson, beating his opponent 4-1.
Both finalists are not happy with their form, even at this late stage and feel they could be playing a lot better. Maybe this a mental ruse, to stop the onlookers from seeing how they actually feel and a method of getting through the rounds and batting off the intense pressure involved. Whatever the true reasoning behind this tactic, it has worked and brought them both in touching distance of the British Open crown.
Who will it Be?
To see who is who could win this title, let’s put both of the players under the spotlight. Firstly Gary Wilson, Gary a hardened snooker player from Wallsend in Tyne and Wear, has been a professional snooker player since 2004 and has gradually climbed up the rankings to his current position of 33. A man of many hairstyles, ‘The Tyneside Terror’, has had to learn the game the hard way with plenty of defeats on the way. A former winner of the IBSF World Under-21 Championship in 2004 and the English Amateur Championship title in 2012, Wilson’s best professional finish to date was reaching the final of the 2015 China Open, losing to Mark Selby 10-2.
A player who first started playing snooker, aged 3, Wilson has in recent years, managed to start going deep into tournaments. So this week’s British Open, was always a chance to get to the desired final point. A journey that he has achieved and could win. Gary is like a dog with a bone and doesn’t give up easily. His hours of practice have not been in vain and he could beat Mark Williams if he scores heavily and is able to match the Welshman’s game.
Mark Williams on the other hand, doesn’t appear on paper to care whether he wins or loses but anyone who knows him or who has watched him over his lengthy career, know that this player from the Class of 92, is a winning machine. This player from Cwm in South Wales has clocked up 23 professional titles to date, a triple crown winner, he has won the World Championship on three occasions. Williams is someone who has come back from the brink in snooker, losing all his concentration and form at one stage and nearly retiring. However, his wife Joanne persuaded him to continue and the rest is history.
Williams last won this title in 1997, defeating Stephen Hendry 9-2. So he will be itching to be the first person to have his name on this revamped trophy. Mark plays snooker like a gentle wave, floating balls into pockets, long or short distance with ease. Someone who is a pleasure to watch, especially when he is winning. The Welshman often wins a match when he is on the brink of defeat and is great at scrapping a match out, even if it means that it is low scoring.
Summary
Whoever wins this title tonight, will deserve it. The obvious champion would be Mark Williams but I wouldn’t write Gary Wilson off. He is hard as nails and perfectly capable of tying his opponent in knots when required. Wilson has played in this tournament, being too young and so to win it in the first year of its return would mark a very successful end to this snooker marathon, one that is decided in the best of 11 frames.
