Mark Williams makes BBC star cry with actions before World Snooker Championship loss

 BBC and Sky Sports journalist Abigail Davis was moved to tears as Mark Williams faced China's Zhao Xintong in the World Snooker Championship final

Mark Williams' achievement of reaching the final caused a wave of emotion

Mark Williams moved a BBC journalist to tears as he walked into the Crucible for his World Snooker Championship final against Zhao Xintong. Zhao became the first Chinese player to win the title with an 18-12 victory against Williams in Sheffield on Monday.

Williams, who had surpassed his own expectations by making it to his fifth Crucible final, also set a record as the oldest finalist in the tournament's history. This feat outshone fellow Welshman Ray Reardon, who was 49 when he lost the 1982 final to Alex Higgins. Abigail Davis, who also works for Sky Sports, couldn't contain her joy at her compatriot's achievement.

"Actually had tears in my eyes watching Mark Williams soak up the atmosphere and adoration as he entered the arena," she shared on X. "Lovely to see him treasuring the moment there. However this finishes, he's a Welsh legend and one of the greatest sports stars of all time."

She later posted: "The level of pride us Welshies feel for our own! What a tremendous effort from Mark J Williams this evening. You'll have to scrape him off that table, mun. YMA O HYD."

The Welsh reporter then followed up her posts, revealing her dream to cover the finals. Despite battling a well-known eye problem, Williams leveraged his extensive experience to reach the final.

He narrowly defeated fellow veteran John Higgins in a quarter-final thriller and then made a remarkable comeback from a 5-1 deficit to eliminate world number one Judd Trump in the semi-finals.

A huge thank you to the #BBCSnooker team for letting this very lucky snooker fan live her dream for 17 days. It's been incredible. Already looking forward to next season ❤️ pic.twitter.com/mHnTyhBNfW

— Abigail Davies (@swanabi) May 5, 2025

 

Mark Williams praised Zhao Xintong after their match

Williams, who is due for eye surgery next month, shared his emotional journey post-match, admitting that the event moved him to tears, much like Davis. "The reception I've had all week... but tonight was something special," he said."When I was stood on the steps and they were all on their feet - it brought a tear to the eye."

However, he graciously acknowledged Zhao's first-ever world title victory. "But the night belongs to Zhao and congratulations," he said. "I've got nothing but admiration for what he's [Zhao] done, coming through the qualifiers. He hasn't played for two years, bashed everybody up. There's a new superstar of the game."

Zhao, who had to fight his way through the qualifiers for his shot at the title, was returning after a 20-month ban following a match-fixing investigation. Overwhelmed by his win over Williams, Zhao praised his 50 year old opponent.

"It's unbelievable. This is like a dream," he said. "When I shook hands with Mark [Williams] I nearly cried. My first target was just to get through the qualifiers. In the future, many Chinese players can win this."