World Championship 2019: Reigning champion Mark Williams in control of opener
- From the section Snooker
| Betfred World Snooker Championship |
|---|
| Venue: Crucible Theatre, Sheffield Dates: 20 April-6 May |
| Coverage: Watch live on BBC One, BBC Two, Red Button, iPlayer, Connected TV, BBC Sport website and BBC Sport app. |
Champion Mark Williams won five frames in a row on his way to building a 6-3 lead over qualifier Martin Gould in the first round of the World Championship.
Former world number 11 Gould took the opener, but missed chances in all the following three frames and trailed 3-1.
Wales' Williams hit his second half-century and a fine 129 for a 5-1 lead.
Englishman Gould took the next two frames but a 97 gave Williams the upper hand in the best-of-19-frame tie, which concludes later on Saturday.
In the other morning match, Belgian 14th seed Luca Brecel battled back from 3-2 down to lead Gary Wilson of England 5-4 at the end of their first session.
As well as Williams and Gould playing to a finish in Saturday's evening session, Scottish 15th seed Stephen Maguire begins his tournament against Tian Pengfei, one of six Chinese players appearing at the Crucible this year.
The afternoon play sees 2010 champion Neil Robertson take on qualifier Michael Georgiou, who is one of seven debutants.
Chinese superstar Ding Junhui also begins his latest quest for a first Crucible title against world number 24 Anthony McGill.
Sign up to My Sport to follow snooker news on the BBC app.
