Hunter brings down the grudge match

Paul Hunter, whose good looks and Beckhamesque blond hair have elevated him to pin-up status, prevented the verbal spat between Mark Williams and Ronnie O'Sullivan from reaching the table with an authoritative performance yesterday.

Hunter, the world No9, beat Williams 6-1 to progress to the semi-finals of the Irish Masters, where the Welshman would have faced O'Sullivan in what was billed as a grudge match after the row over comments made in the latter's autobiography.

Williams offered scant resistance in yesterday's surprisingly one-sided contest, Hunter recording only his second win against him in 12 meetings. "Mark didn't play very well but my game was solid," said the British Open champion from Yorkshire. "He couldn't settle and missed so many balls that it gave me confidence."

Williams had appeared in the semi-finals of this season's previous five tournaments and had been the outstanding player so far after winning the UK Championship and Benson & Hedges Masters. A break of 83 in the fourth frame was his only highlight, though, in an otherwise low-quality performance.

"I haven't played well all week but I thought I'd perform better against Paul," said the 2000 world champion, now ranked No2. "I wasn't there from the start. I even hit the wrong red from a break-off shot. I had plenty of chances but couldn't get anything going. From the first frame he was too good for me."

Williams lost his world No1 position to O'Sullivan last year but has seen his fortunes turn round this season after teaming up with the respected coach Terry Griffiths. "I'm not too concerned," he said. "I just can't understand where that performance came from. I felt flat in every match this week for the first time in about eight months. I suppose it was due to happen at some time."

The Williams-O'Sullivan feud, which will no doubt resurface, has overshadowed this tournament to such an extent that Hunter's progress, which included a 5-4 second-round victory over Stephen Hendry, went virtually unnoticed.

Once regarded as a wild child, the 24-year-old Hunter has matured considerably in the past few years and continues to provide tangible evidence that hard work pays dividends.

Were it not for Williams, who beat him in the previous three tournaments, Hunter might have filled his trophy cabinet further. "If I can beat Mark, there's no reason why I can't win [here]," he added. "Players may consider this as good practice for the world championship but I really want to pick the trophy up on Sunday."