China has become a global leader in snooker in the last decade. The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) has worked to promote snooker in China. China is the largest country that plays snooker and has over 50 million players. However, there has not been a Chinese world championship winner. As the sport grows more popular, it is predicted that Chinese snooker athletes will increase in number.
Chinese snooker players have been hailed as icons of their country. Every tournament attracts thousands of spectators. They are treated as A-list celebrities, enjoy red carpet entries and receive champagne receptions. There are more young players becoming involved in the sport, as the popularity grows. Tian Pengfei is among the youngest players. Zhang Jiankang is also among them.
The sport was once again under fire despite China becoming the most dominant player in snooker over the past decade. Yu Delu, a former professional player, was banned on 1/12 for match-fixing. Yu is currently suspended for a period of 10 years. WPBSA is also looking into match-fixing allegations to bet purposes.
The suspensions have cast doubt over the sport, even though no player has been banned. There are only 12 Chinese players in the top 64 of the world. The suspension list added Zhao Xintong to the list and Li Hang to it has reduced that number to 11. Moreover, the CBSA is investigating allegations that Liang Wenbo, Lu Ning and Chang Bingyu were involved in match-fixing.
Yan Bingtao who is the 2021 Masters Champion is the largest name in the investigation. He was set to compete in a World Snooker Tour competition next month. However, he was disqualified after being drew against Mark Williams in the first round. While he was expected to become the first Chinese player ever to win a championship in the world, his comment regarding the ongoing investigation is limited.
Another Chinese player, Zhao Xintong, is suspended from the World Snooker Tour. He was ranked world's No. 1 player earlier this year. He is widely regarded as one the most talented players in the sport. He is now being investigated as part a global probe into match fixing.
Other Chinese players that have been investigated include former world no. Liang Wenbo was suspended in October. Several other Chinese players have been reprimanded for alleged cheating or abuse. These are a small number compared to the hundreds of millions of fans who have followed the sport in China.
However, the World Tour has a lot of Chinese players which shows the popularity of the game in China. More tournaments are held in China.
However, the country has still a long way to go to reach the success of the UK. As more tournaments are held, more Chinese players are making their way into professional snooker.
Zhao Xintong & Ding Junhui are currently the top-ranked Chinese players in the entire world. Ding is an extremely popular Chinese player who has won numerous ranking titles. Ding expressed his desire to win the World Championship, even though he did not win a championship.