Williams hopeful eye surgery will prolong career

Mark Williams will play Iran's Hossein Vafaei in the second round of the World Championship

Halo World Championship

Venue: Crucible Theatre, Sheffield Dates: 19 April to 5 May

Coverage: Watch live on BBC TV, BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport website and app; live text coverage of selected matches; updates on BBC Radio 5 Live

Three-time world champion Mark Williams hopes eye surgery in June will help to extend his snooker career.

Williams, who turned 50 in March, said last month that his "eyes had completely gone" and that his eyesight had "deteriorated quite badly" in the previous six months.

Speaking to BBC Sport after his first-round win over Wu Yize at the World Championship, the Welshman said: "I'm seeing about three or four [balls] at a time.

"I've tried playing with contacts but it's very difficult and really uncomfortable in my eyes.

"I'm booked in on 12 June, I think, to get a lens replacement. If everything goes OK, hopefully that could prolong my career for another four or five years. That's what I'm hoping anyway."

Williams won the Champion of Champions title in November, two months after reaching the final of the Saudi Arabia Masters, and is ranked sixth in the world.

He required all of his years of experience to get over the winning line against Chinese qualifier Wu, who produced some stunning scoring in the first session and pushed Williams hard before the left-hander eventually wrapped up a 10-8 victory.

"It's good for me [to be tested] because I finished off really strongly," said Williams, who will play Iran's Hossein Vafaei in round two. "I potted a couple of long ones and made a frame-winning break in the last frame.

"It's in the tank, it's been in the tank all season. I've won a tournament, I got to the final of another big one and lost a few first-rounders.

"You just want to win in the first round here because if you lose on the Saturday or Sunday, you don't really feel like you've been in the tournament because it doesn't really start until the second week.

"I'm over the moon to get through, I could easily have been out and watching the rest on television, but I'll go home, come back up on Wednesday or Thursday and go again."