Zhao Xintong WINS the World Snooker Championship as he dominates Mark Williams 18-12 – but his recent match-fixing ban hangs over his title, writes DAVID COVERDALE

By DAVID COVERDALE

From corruption shame to Crucible fame.

Zhao Xintong made snooker history on Monday night by becoming the first Chinese player to win the World Championship. 

But while the 28-year-old’s dominant 18-12 win over Mark Williams was a landmark moment for the sport, it was hardly something to celebrate given he has recently returned from a match-fixing ban.

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.

For many then, Zhao’s Crucible coronation will have left a sour taste. And yet, if you were to forget the scandal and focus only on the snooker, what he has achieved is astonishing.

Zhao Xintong is the first amateur and Chinese player to win the World Snooker Championship

Zhao beat Mark Williams 18-12 but his recent match-fixing ban has left a sour taste 

He scooped up £500,000 and has risen to world No 11 after winning 47 of his last 49 matches 

Zhao is the first amateur to ever win the world title here, having been dumped from the professional tour because of his ban. He is also just the third qualifier to triumph at the Crucible, after Terry Griffiths and Shaun Murphy, and he won nine matches and 111 frames to do so, more than anybody has ever had to do.

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. Based on what we have seen in Sheffield, Zhao could go on to dominate the game for years to come.

‘I can’t believe what I have done, it is like a dream,’ said Zhao, who held aloft a Chinese flag in celebration at a win which was watched by an estimated 150 million in his homeland.

‘I am so happy that I am back. For nearly two years I didn’t play a competition, so my first target was just to qualify for the Crucible. I can’t believe that I am now the champion. It is very good for Chinese snooker.’

Having led Williams 11-6 overnight, Zhao moved to within one frame of the title in yesterday’s afternoon session when he extended his advantage to 17-8.

An emotional Williams rallied in the evening, reeling off four successive frames to reduce the deficit to 17-12 and keep alive a dream of a miracle comeback.

However, Zhao finally finished the job in the 30th frame with a break of 87 to leave 50-year-old Williams to declare: ‘There’s a new superstar of the game. I’m glad I’ll be too old when he’s dominating.

Williams hailed Zhao as a ‘new superstar of the game’ and ‘as good to watch as Ronnie O’Sullivan when he was younger’ 

Zhao said his aim had just been to qualify and has been hailed as a Luke Littler-style success (despite being 28) 

‘He is as good to watch as Ronnie O’Sullivan when he was younger. He’s probably the best potter I’ve ever seen. He hasn’t played for two years and he has come back and bashed everybody up.

‘With the Luke Littler thing in the darts, this is what snooker needed. It could be huge for the sport.’

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Zhao Xintong WINS the World Snooker Championship as he dominates Mark Williams 18-12 – but his recent match-fixing ban hangs over his title, writes DAVID COVERDALE

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