MARK Williams insists he is not out for revenge when he meets Ricky Walden in third round of the UK Snooker Championship in York on Tuesday.
The two-time UK champion from Cwm, who last lifted the trophy 11 years ago, was on the wrong end of a defeat to Walden at the 2011 tournament at the second-round stage.
And a 6-3 win against Rory McLeod on Sunday afternoon saw Williams move into the third round at the Barbican Centre in York and set up a rematch with Walden.
However Williams, the world number 18, is not interested in getting one over on the Chester potter – just simply beating him on his way back into the sport’s elite.
“I don’t really go on revenge, I just want to beat whoever I play,” said Williams. “I might say revenge if I win, but I don’t really look at it like that.
“He is in the top 16 and I’m just outside and trying to get back in. To get back in you have got to beat top-16 players. Hopefully I can do that.
“Every frame was a long slog (against McLeod). I don’t think either of us made a one-visit break – it was all 40s, 50s and 20 minutes of safety.
“It was not a great match to be involved in. I was getting very frustrated, just with the balls I was missing. I couldn’t put many breaks together.
“I’m over the moon I’m in the next round but I know I have got to improve massively.”
Williams, a former world number one and two-time world champion, was forced into a delayed start against McLeod after one of the morning matches overran.
And the 38-year-old admitted the delay had affected his performance along with McLeod’s dogged approach and a dwindling crowd at the Barbican.
“We went on a couple of hours late, which obviously dragged it on a bit,” he added. “It was a bit flat out there.
“Going on late means there’s not that many people towards the end and I just probably felt a bit flat really.
“It was a tough match, really hard – I knew it was going to be like that against Rory. I’m glad I won but I’m not really glad with the way I played.
“He is always tough when you play – I haven’t played him that many times – but I’m just disappointed with my own performance really.
“There you go, I’m still in and I’ll hopefully get better.” Eurosport is the Home of Snooker, showing 19 tournaments this season including the World Championship, UK Championship, the Masters and all ranking events, available on Sky, Virgin Media & BT or online/on mobile via eurosportplayer.co.uk
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