Zhao Xintong won the World Snooker Championship for the first time on Monday night, but the Chinese cueman’s victory came after a 20-month suspension that remains “a stain” on his legacy
BBC snooker experts Steve Davis and John Parrott delivered honest verdicts on Zhao Xintong after winning his first World Snooker Championship following a 20-month ban. The talented Chinese star overcame Mark Williams 18-12 in what can only be described as a Crucible classic that wrapped up on Monday.
Zhao, 28, had been suspended in 2023 relating to offences surrounding match-fixing – a scandal that saw 10 players either banned permanently or serve lengthy suspensions. Although he was not caught fixing matches himself, Zhao admitted involvement with others who did and was penalised for betting-related transgressions.
Yet both Davis and Parrott agreed he’s earned his shot at redemption on the baize. And as was proved in recent days, the first Asian snooker world champion is too talented to not grasp it when presented.
Speaking about his triumph over Williams, ‘The Nugget’ told the BBC’s Hazel Irvine (via the Express): “I think we should celebrate [his World Championship win], the fact he plays breath-taking snooker.
“Obviously the blip, it’s a stain on his CV – hopefully lessons have been learnt, by all players [and] not just him. I think most people would agree everyone deserves a second chance. And, boy, hasn’t he taken it.”
Parrott also chimed in with his support: “It’s a second chance, and he’s totally redeemed himself. He did the crime, he’s had the time, he held his hand up, the association has handled it with the punishment he got.
“Two of his compatriots got life bans, it was handled very well. Here he is, he’s got a second chance, he’s come back and he won’t be doing it again.”
Six-time world champion Davis sang Zhao’s praises further as he continued: “Every time anybody put anything up to him, he responded. He’s a cool customer. He just takes everything in his stride, and he’s going to be a danger in the future.
“You see the quality of Zhao Xintong – it’s the future and the shape of things to come. But not just from China, we’re seeing more players come out from Europe as well. It’s going to be a slow diversification around the world and snooker will be the healthier for it.
“From the UK’s perspective, we’ve got some great young players coming through as well – it’s going to be a great balance in the future. It’s no longer just the top 16 that have it all their own way – the qualifiers are their own individual tournament and the qualifiers are getting stronger and stronger.”
Zhao addressed the matter of his ban at the UK Championship in November, a tournament he won in 2021. And he described the matter as “a little mistake,” albeit with the deficit of a language barrier.
“Two years ago I made a little mistake, now I’ve come back,” he said. “I know how important snooker is to me and now I just want to come back to the snooker table. Let them know this is a big lesson, don’t make the mistake. Play snooker, it’s a very good thing.”
Williams, 50, briefly launched a comeback effort in Monday’s final session after heading in 17-8 down following the afternoon segment. But even the Welshman admitted he didn’t have enough left in the tank, referring to Zhao as possibly “the greatest potter he has seen.”
