Snooker star reveals players wanted new world champion Zhao Xintong BANNED from the Crucible after match fixing scandal
Snooker's top stars wanted new world champion Zhao Xintong banned from the Crucible this year, one of the sport's best players has revealed.
Xintong made history at the start of this week when he became the first world champion from Asia at the age of 28, beating Welshman Mark Williams 18-12 in the final having also seen off Ronnie O'Sullivan in the last four.
That's despite him still being banned from playing in his homeland of China due to a match fixing scandal that Xintong was involved in.
Zhao, as his supporters have been keen to point out, did not directly throw a match, unlike the other nine Chinese stars sanctioned in 2023 following a major corruption investigation.
However, the Cyclone was party to another player fixing and placed illegal bets on games, earning him a 20-month suspension which only lifted last September.
And former world champion Shaun Murphy, who also played in the competition, has spoken out on his rival's win, raising questions over how the star was allowed to compete in the first place.
'Asking the question, how can a player who is still banned by their own governing body be seen and be deemed to be in good standing?' Murphy said on the OneFourSeven podcast. 'And therefore be allowed to enter WPBSA events such as Q Tour – that was a question that was asked about 10 months ago, before the start of the season that's just ended.
'It seemed fairly black and white to most of us that he wasn't in good standing with his national governing body.
'There are lots of other players that this has and does, and will apply to. You can't just go around joining federations and tournaments as you see fit.
'You have to be in good standing. The question we all asked was, how can a player who is still banned be deemed to be in good standing?
'I'm yet to hear a satisfactory answer from anyone at WPBSA Towers or the tour, so I don't know the answer.'
Zhao, who competed as an amateur after qualifying for the Tour by attending the amateur Q Tour, was just the third qualifier to triumph at the Crucible, after Terry Griffiths and Murphy.
Amazingly, Zhao's victory over three-time world champion Williams was his 47th in 49 matches since he returned to the table at a low-key Q Tour event in Bulgaria less than eight months ago.
His second Triple Crown title, after the UK Championship in 2021, also elevates him to 11 in the world rankings and sees him bank £500,000.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
6 hours ago
- The Sun
Rio Ferdinand gets new job six thousand miles away after shock TNT Sports departure
RIO FERDINAND has landed a shock new job more than 6,000 miles away from the UK. It comes weeks after the Man Utd legend sensationally quit his punditry role at TNT Sports. 1 Ferdinand has now been hired for a new role with EA SPORTS. The 46-year-old is heading to Thailand to work at the EA SPORTS FC Mobile Festival in Bangkok. THIS IS A DEVELOPING STORY.. The Sun is your go to destination for the best football, boxing and MMA news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures and must-see video. Like us on Facebook at and follow us from our main Twitter account at @TheSunFootball.
Metro
6 hours ago
- Metro
Wuhan Open and British Open draws made as Ronnie O'Sullivan enters both
There is precious little time off on the snooker calendar these days, with the new season getting underway in less than two weeks. Qualifiers for the Wuhan Open are followed by British Open qualifying, with those matches taking place in Leicester this month before the main events later in the year. While it is a low-key start to the season, they are vital matches for a lot of players on tour as early defeats in the opening two ranking events of the season would represent a bit of a nightmare start to the season. Not all the big names are in action in qualifying, with eight matches held over for the main stages of the Wuhan Open and 16 matches held over to Cheltenham for the British Open. Ronnie O'Sullivan will not be playing in qualifying, but he is in the draw for both events, taking on Allan Taylor in Wuhan and Sanderson Lam in Cheltenham. New world champion Zhao Xintong also has his matches held over, playing Iulian Boiko in Wuhan and a yet-to-be confirmed top-up player in Cheltenham. The British Open has an open, FA Cup-style draw, so there are some heavyweight matches from the first round, including Mark Williams taking on Si Jiahui and Kyren Wilson facing Chris Wakelin. Details on how to watch the Wuhan Open and British Open qualifiers are expected to be announced next week. Following the two sets of qualifiers the Championship League begins on Monday June 30 and runs all the way until a champion is crowned on July 23. The main stages of the Wuhan Open run from August 24-30 and the following first round games are held over to the tournament venue. More Trending Xiao Guodong v Mink NutcharutDing Junhui v wild cardJudd Trump v Farakh AjaibRonnie O'Sullivan v Allan TaylorMark Allen v wild cardHossein Vafaei v wild cardRobbie Williams v wild card Zhao Xintong v Iulian Boiko Sunday June 22 10amJoe O'Connor vs Jiang JunZhou Yuelong vs Yuhao LanNoppon Saengkham vs Robbie McGuiganJamie Jones vs Liu WenweiMatt Selt vs Sunny AkaniWu Yize vs Louis Heathcote Ishpreet Singh Chadha vs Yao Pengcheng 2.30pmElliot Slessor vs Oliver LinesLuca Brecel vs Haris TahisJohn Higgins vs Hiang JiahaoFan Zhengyi vs Ben MertensSi Jiahui vs Bulcsu ReveszRicky Walden vs David Grace Long Zehuang vs Dylan Emery 7pmJordan Brown vs Duane JonesDavid Lilley vs Reanne EvansMark Williams vs Chatchapong NasaMichael Holt vs Liam GrahamSanderson Lam vs Zhao HanyangMark Davis vs Liam Davies Martin O'Donnell vs Haydon Pinhey Monday June 23 10amGary Wilson vs Gao YangLyu Haotian vs Bai YuluLiu Hongyu vs Ian BurnsDan Wells vs Chang BingyuYuan Sijun vs Xu YichenZhang Anda vs Steven Hallworth He Guoqiang vs Artemijs Zizins 2.30pmShaun Murphy vs Michal SzubarczykAaron Hill vs Sam CraigieNeil Robertson vs Leone CrowleyStephen Maguire vs Kreishh GurbaxaniZak Surety vs Gong ChenzhiPang Junxu vs Hatem Yassen Thepchaiya Un-Nooh vs Fergal Quinn 7pmTom Ford vs Mateusz BaranowskiAli Carter vs Florian NuessleScott Donaldson vs Mitchell MannMatthew Stevens vs Sahil NayyarMark Selby vs Alexander UrsenbacherStan Moody vs Antoni Kowalski Jack Lisowski vs Amir Sarkhosh Tuesday June 24 10amJackson Page vs Ross MuirLei Peifan vs Ng On YeeRobert Milkins vs Wang YuchenXu Si vs Chris TottenRyan Day vs Jonas LuzChris Wakelin vs Marco Fu Dave Gilbert vs Ka Wai Cheung 2.30pmBarry Hawkins vs Julien LeclercqBen Woollaston vs Jen DohertyStuart Bingham vs Liam HighfieldJak Jones vs Oliver BrownJimmy Robertson vs Liam PullenKyren Wilson vs Connor Benzey Anthony McGill vs Jimmy White The main stages of the British Open run from September 22-28 in Cheltenham. The following matches are held over for the main venue. Mark Selby v David GraceJudd Trump v Aaron HillMark Williams v Si JiahuiZhao Xintong v Top-up playerRonnie O'Sullivan v Sanderson LamKyren Wilson v Chris WakelinJohn Higgins v Mark DavisShaun Murphy v Ross MuirNeil Robertson v Tom FordMark Allen v Jiang JunBarry Hawkins v Daniel WellsXiao Guodong v Haydon PinheyZhang Anda v Duane JonesWu Yize v Pang JunxuAli Carter v Top-up player Gary Wilson v Hossein Vafaei Wednesday June 25 10amJonas Luz vs Ka Wai CheungYuan Sijun vs Jamie Jones Marco Fu vs Stephen Maguire 1pmElliot Slessor vs Jackson PageJimmy Robertson vs TBC Haris Tahir vs Ken Doherty 4pmJimmy White vs Liam DaviesLuca Brecel vs Alexander Ursenbacher Louis Heathcote vs Jordan Brown 7pmJack Lisowski vs Liam HighfieldIshpreet Singh Chadha vs Scott Donaldson Wang Yuchen vs Mitchell Mann Thursday June 26 10amKreishh Gurbaxani vs Chang BingyuLiu Hongyu vs Ng On Yee Xu Si vs Florian Nuessle 1pmSteven Hallworth vs Sunny AkaniFergal Quinn vs Gao Yang He Guoqiang vs Farakh Ajaib 4pmLiam Pullen vs Ben MertensMichal Szubarczyk vs TBC Ryan Day vs Stuart Bingham 7pmDavid Lilley vs Liam GrahamGong Chenzhi vs Jak Jones Chris Totten vs Antoni Kowalski Friday June 27 10amNoppon Saengkham vs Liu WenweiHuang Jiahao vs Matthew Stevens Robbie McGuigan vs Lyu Haotian 1pmStan Moody vs Zhou YuelongBai Yulu vs Artemijs Zizins Yao Pengcheng vs Sam Craigie 4pmMartin O'Donnell vs Sahil NayyarRicky Walden vs Joe O'Connor Oliver Lines vs TBC 7pmLeone Crowley vs Hatem YassenConnor Benzey vs Iulian Boiko Matt Selt vs Dave Gilbert Saturday June 28 10amLei Peifan vs Mateusz BaranowskiLong Zehuang vs Thepchaiya Un-Nooh Mink Nutcharut vs Amir Sarkhosh 1pmOliver Brown vs Xu YichenLan Yuhao vs Reanne Evans Fan Zhengyi vs Robert Milkins 4pmZak Surety vs Zhao HanyangRobbie Williams vs Bulcsu Revesz Anthony McGill vs Dylan Emery 7pmIan Burns vs Michael HoltJulien Leclercq vs Ben Woollaston Allan Taylor vs Chatchapong Nasa MORE: Stephen Hendry and Ken Doherty disagree on most underrated snooker player ever MORE: Anthony Hamilton reflects on epic career as Sheriff of Pottingham hands in his badge MORE: Which players could actually win World Snooker Tour's huge century of centuries bonus?
The Guardian
7 hours ago
- The Guardian
When will a team from North America, Asia or Africa win the men's World Cup?
We're now a year-ish from the World Cup. The tournament is still dominated by European and South American teams. But which continent without a winner (Asia, Africa, Central and North America and, I guess, Oceania) has the best chance of lifting the trophy first? – Stacey This is a fascinating question and one that brings a wide range of factors into play. To start, what difference will the expansion of the tournament make? On one hand, extending the tournament so the winner will have to get through eight games rather than seven probably makes shocks less likely, but on the other hand an extra knockout round adds another layer of randomness. Even with four knockout rounds, most champions usually had at least one game of significant jeopardy – a win on penalties, or an edgy one-goal victory after extra-time. Winning all five knockout games in 90 minutes, I suspect, will prove extremely rare but the likelihood is still that the winner will be one of the major European powers – France, Spain, Germany, England, Portugal, Italy and the Netherlands – or one of the big two from South America – Argentina and Brazil. On a similar note, weight of numbers should help the other confederations: 15 of the 32 qualifiers in 2022 were from outside Uefa and Conmebol; in 2026 either 25 or 26 of 48 will be. That should increase the chance of a side hitting a run of exceptional form at the right time. But this isn't just about confederations. Between 2006 and 2018, 13 of 16 semi-finalists in the World Cup were European. There was a clear sense within the game that the major western European nations had in effect industrialised youth production – to the extent that the majority of, say, Morocco's squad in 2022, had been trained in France. Add a wealthy league in which the best of a nation's youth can gain an exceptional and immediate education and the advantage enjoyed by western Europe is clear. Argentina bucked that trend in 2022, in part because of the brilliance of Lionel Messi, and in part because of its remarkable reserves of coaching talent (seven of the 10 Conmebol nations are managed by Argentinians, and that's without counting Óscar Ibáñez, who was born in Argentina but played for and now manages Peru). But to return to the specifics of the question: money helps, so the USA, Mexico and Canada have at least a slim chance of success. Africa has the talent but its football – and this is obviously a generalisation – is beset by poverty and corruption. Morocco showed their capacity in Qatar, and if, say, Nigeria or Senegal managed to find an enlightened coach who could bypass all the political issues at the same time they had a gifted generation, there's no reason there couldn't be an African winner – although it doesn't feel imminent. Asia, perhaps, is most likely, although we're probably only talking about three countries at the moment. Japan and South Korea have been regular World Cup qualifiers, their level has improved dramatically, there is money to invest, a deep-rooted passion for the game, and their players are increasingly gaining experience at the best clubs. Or there's Saudi Arabia, a traditional power in the Asian game, and hosts in 2034. We're yet to see what impact all the Saudi PIF's investment in football will have, but money, a political will to succeed, an improving league must give them at least an outside chance with home advantage in eight years. As an American, I defy anyone to argue the 1994 World Cup jersey is not the best in soccer history. Do you have any personal favorites? – Matt I confess I find the fetishisation of shirts a little odd. I hate over-fussy shirts, and I wish Sunderland would go back to black socks, but I'm not sure there are any shirts I really love. I was talking to a friend about this on the way to the Championship play-off final, looking at the masses of red-and-white all around while we were both wearing very neutral check shirts. We wondered whether it's because in our formative years of going to games, away games especially, in the late 80s and early 90s, it was useful to be able to blend into the background if any violence kicked off. But I suppose if pressed, I always quite liked the simple Adidas, early 80s, plain colour with three stripes along the sleeves – the pale-blue West Germany goalkeeper's top in particular. It's probably my age – I've watched football for nearly 70 years – but I really miss old-fashioned wingers, playing on the 'correct' wing, beating their defender on the outside and providing crosses for their fellow attackers. The case for inverted wingers seems to be that coming 'inside' on to their stronger foot increases their chances of shooting and scoring. It's now de rigueur for wingers to be inverted. Does the likelihood of inverted wingers scoring goals by coming inside really compensate for the fewer effective crosses they make for their fellow attackers? – Derek I agree that there remains something aesthetically very pleasing about a centre-forward meeting an outswinging cross with a header – Alexander Isak's goal from Anthony Gordon's cross for Newcastle against Arsenal last season, for instance – but I suspect that ship has sailed. Herbert Chapman was arguing that a focus on wingers crossing for forwards was inefficient 100 years ago, and most modern theory seems to agree with him. The preference now is either for wide players cutting infield – Peter Taylor was a pioneer in England, but Dennis Tueart and others did it as well – or to work the ball to the goalline for a low cutback – the classic Manchester City goal of a couple of seasons ago. Sign up to Soccer with Jonathan Wilson Jonathan Wilson brings expert analysis on the biggest stories from European soccer after newsletter promotion One of the reasons wide forwards now cut inside is the explosion in attacking full-backs, who now provide most of the width. A full-back could go inside, as say Trent Alexander-Arnold or João Cancelo do, but that is relatively rare and if the full-back is going on the outside, the wide forward has go inside to create space for him. I think there's also a recognition that forwards cutting in, often against the defender's weaker foot, is very hard to combat – hence the rise in the sort of goal Lamine Yamal seems to score every week, whipping the ball into the far corner. Kevin Keegan was perhaps the first English player, certainly in the postwar years, to make a success of a move to a European giant. He left Liverpool in 1977 for Hamburg, where he won the league in 1978-79 and was twice named European Footballer of the Year. He also marketed himself with an eagerness unusual in English players of the time, becoming a bona fide celebrity. And, on 9 June 1979, he released his second, but by some distance his most successful single, Head Over Heels in Love. His first single, It Ain't Easy, had been released in 1972, just a year after he'd moved to Liverpool from Scunthorpe and made very little impression. But Head Over Heels reached No 31 in the UK charts, and No 10 in Germany. And this is where those of a nervous disposition should look away. Keegan gave a preview of the song on Das Aktuelle Sport-Studio. His German seems very good, but that thought soon fades as he gets to the performance … This is an extract from Soccer with Jonathan Wilson, a weekly look from the Guardian US at the game in Europe and beyond. Subscribe for free here. Have a question for Jonathan? Email soccerwithjw@ and he'll answer the best in a future edition.
