A 5-3 win against Mark Allen booked his safe passage to the quarter-finals in Wuxi and he now has a fantastic chance to claim a seventh title on this continent, adding to his three Thailand Masters and two China Open wins.
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| Picture by Monique Limbos |
It doesn't matter where Williams plays, he's always capable of producing.
The Welshman will be the first to admit he doesn't enjoy playing away from home and his family, but it hasn't stopped him coming up with the goods. Once he's out there, he manages to get down to work and make his time away worthwhile.
His beating of Allen comes after a 5-0 thrashing of Tom Ford in the first round and shows he's well in the groove. Participating in the APTC1 event last week looks to have helped his match sharpness and he's now among the favourites to go all the way with so many seeds knocked out early doors.
On paper, world number one Mark Selby is his biggest challenger but he can't meet the Jester until the final. This would be a re-match of their famous meeting in last season's Shanghai Masters where Selby controversially stole the match from under the nose of Williams, following a dubious refereeing decision.
This was to be the last final Williams played in all season and was the turning point towards a downturn in form. This defeat came shortly after he'd also lost the Australian Open from a winning position against Stuart Bingham.
William's greatest asset is usually temperament and his ability to perform no matter what the circumstances, but it's too much of a coincidence to believe these shattering losses didn't play a part in a season where he went on to enjoy few successes.
This is the second campaign in succession where he's started with a spring in his step and if he can get his hands back on silverware, it could kickstart a return to top form.
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