Snooker Becomes Victim of Fixed Matches and Corruption.
The world of professional billiards and snooker is no stranger to controversy, as it's a realm where money sometimes trumps fairness. In recent developments, the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) has made a decision to ban two Chinese players, Zhao Xintong and Zhang Jiankang, from the World Snooker Tour for being involved in match-fixing. This is part of a compilation of ten Chinese players that have been punished by the association for rigging matches.
The bulk of these players are now forbidden to participate in any WPBSA-sanctioned events or observe them as spectators. This latest event follows a series of complaints that under investigation revolve around rigging results in games.
Some of these players had already been handed suspensions or sanctions, including Liang Wenbo, Lu Ning, Li Hang, Zhao Jianbo, Bai Langning, Chang Bingyu, Chen Zifan, making headlines for one standing out. The youngest snooker player so far to win a Masters, Yan Bingtao has also experienced such a situation.
The Chinese cue artists' collusion had even led to one of them winning the Masters in 2021. Zhao Xintong, who garnered a wealth of attention for his proficiency and recent UK Championship win in 2021, finds himself in a predicament. His high rank (ninth) will need to be temporarily forfeited while he resolves the discrepancies.
Upcoming matches are undoubtedly impacted, with Zhao's initial participation in the next Masters event now obsolete. He was scheduled to challenge Mark Selby in the first round, but this will no longer take place. Substituting him, the frontrunner to face Selby will be Iranian pro Hossein Vafaei, currently ranked 19 behind David Gilbert.
The Chairman of the WPBSA, Jason Ferguson, made the announcement, receiving harsh feedback from the affected players. Out of the group, Bingtao's unique path to victory captures particular attention — becoming the youngest to win a Masters at age 17 since Ronnie O’Sullivan accomplished this 16 years prior. However, all ten players have yet to reveal any statements since the bans were revealed.In contrast to the unspoken attitude, the other notable pro, Mark Selby, possessing 21 ranking tournament victories, critiqued those involved. He suggests a "lifetime" ban for every individual, but the WPBSA's Chairman hints that this measure is "somewhat unlikely."
Without offering much information, Ferguson did not disclose the type and amount of evidence gathered or the duration of the suspensions. Despite this, the players may appeal the verdict but must face the consequences in the current timeframe.
In more recent stir, the WPBSA heads a crisis of identity, a worsening conundrum worsened by the latest match-fixing scandal. Foreshadowing this, the one and only dominant player, Ronnie O’Sullivan, had been slated for criticism by his competitor, Shaun Murphy.
Hopping onto the bandwagon, Murphy spoke up openly during the UK Championship against his rival, decrying O’Sullivan for not representing snooker well enough. He returned fire by calling the former a snooker snob. However, O’Sullivan didn't react to Murphy's sentiments.
In the English Open event last month, there was an incident murmured about amongst the snooker community. Elliot Slessor engaged Neil Robertson in a game. During the match, Robertson attempted a tricky shot and used a "spider" (a type of bridge used to pass the cue stick over a ball) due to the ball's position.
Unfortunately, the ref judged the shot as a foul, as it touched the cleared ball. This decision left Robertson surprised as the physics of the shot offered no suggestion of ball movement. Despite the surprising decision, Robertson won the match, leaving spectators to ponder the incident's implications.
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