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Zhao Xintong

In this Chinese name, the family name is Zhao (赵).

Zhao Xintong (Chinese: 赵心童; born 3 April 1997) is a Chinese snooker player. Xintong won the 2021 UK Championship, but received a 20-month ban from the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association after committing offences relating to betting on snooker in 2023. This ban expired on 1 September 2024.

Zhao Xintong
Zhao at the 2016 Paul Hunter Classic
Born (1997-04-03) 3 April 1997 (age 27)
Xi’an, Shaanxi, China
Sport country China
NicknameThe Cyclone[1]
Professional2016–2023
Highest ranking6 (May 2022)
Century breaks140
Tournament wins
Ranking2
Medal record
Men's Snooker
Representing  China
Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games
Gold medal – first place 2017 Ashgabat Singles
Bronze medal – third place 2017 Ashgabat Team

Zhao attracted attention as a teenager, with a number of top players commenting on his potential in the sport. He joined the professional tour in 2016 and won his first ranking title and first Triple Crown title at the 2021 UK Championship, defeating Luca Brecel 10–5 in the final. With this win, he entered the top 16 in the world rankings for the first time and became eligible for his first Masters.[2] He won his second ranking title at the 2022 German Masters when he whitewashed Yan Bingtao 9–0 in the final, becoming only the third player, after Steve Davis and Neil Robertson, to win a two-session ranking final without conceding a frame.[3]

In January 2023, the sport's governing body suspended Zhao as part of a match-fixing investigation involving ten Chinese players.[4] He was subsequently charged with being concerned in fixing matches on the World Snooker Tour and betting on snooker. Following an independent disciplinary tribunal, Zhao was banned from professional competition until 1 September 2024.[5]

Since his ban has ended, Zhao has competed on the Q Tour in a bid to regain professional status.[6] In October 2024, he won Q Tour Event 3 held in Stockholm, and became the first player to record a maximum break on the Q Tour.[7] The following month he repeated the feat, making another maximum break on his run to win Event 4 held in Manchester.[8]

Career

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"This boy was astonishingly good and better than anybody I have ever seen at that age - and that includes Ronnie O'Sullivan!"

— Steve Davis[9]

Zhao Xintong first drew international attention in June 2012 at the Zhangjiagang Open defeating high ranking players Xiao Guodong, Irishman Kevin McMahon and Yu Delu to reach the last 16 of the tournament where he narrowly lost 4–3 to Stephen Lee. Zhao would build on this success by reaching the second round of Asian Tour Events the Yixing Open and Zhengzhou Open.

As a wildcard entrant he defeated former World Champion Ken Doherty in the International Championship to reach the last 32 of a ranking event for the first time, again narrowly losing in a final frame decider 6–5 to Matthew Stevens. Having also earned his way to the last 32 of the World Open and China Open, Zhao started gaining the reputation of the Wildcard Menace, a mantle formerly held by Kevin McMahon.[10]

In 2013, at the International Championship, he beat six-time World Champion Steve Davis 6–1 who later commented: "This boy was astonishingly good and better than anybody I have ever seen at that age - and that includes Ronnie O'Sullivan."[9] He went on to reach the third round of the competition before losing 6–2 to Marco Fu, however he would go on to avenge this loss by defeating Fu in the first round of the 2014 Shanghai Masters.[11] Zhao entered the World Amateur Championship in late 2013 reaching the final, however he lost to his fellow countryman Zhou Yuelong 8–4 and thus missed out on a chance to join the world snooker main tour for the 2014–15 season.[12]

2014–15 season

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Zhao entered several events in an attempt to qualify for the 2015–16 season. He was narrowly defeated in the first round of the ACBS Asian Snooker Championship. He won three games in the first event of the 2015 Q School before losing 4–3 to Alexander Ursenbacher in the penultimate round. In the second event Zhao got extremely close to qualifying for the main tour managing to reach the final round before losing 4–3 to Duane Jones in a black ball finish in the deciding frame.[13][14]

2015–16 season

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Zhao's high Q School Order of Merit ranking gave him entry as a top up player to many events in the 2015–16 season. He whitewashed Stuart Carrington 6–0 to qualify for the International Championship and, despite losing 6–2 to John Higgins in the first round, his effort of 142 won the high break prize for the event.[15] Zhao made his first appearance at the UK Championship, German Masters and Welsh Open, but was knocked out in the opening round of each.[16] He lost in the final of the 2015 IBSF World Snooker Championship 8–6 to Pankaj Advani.[17] It meant that Zhao won a two-year card for the main tour after Advani declined the invitation.[18]

2016–17 season

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2016 Paul Hunter Classic

After whitewashing Wang Yuchen 4–0 at the English Open, Zhao met Ronnie O'Sullivan in the second round. Breaks of 130, 107 and 80 saw him lead 3–2, but he missed chances to take the win and was defeated 4–3. O'Sullivan said afterwards that Zhao's attacking style of play had reminded him of Stephen Hendry when he was a similar age.[19] He qualified for the German Masters by beating Li Hang 5–3 and John Higgins 5–1 and a 5–0 thrashing of Sunny Akani saw Zhao reach the last 16 of a ranking event for the first time. He held a narrow 4–3 advantage over Ali Carter, but lost the last two frames.[20] Zhao was also edged out in the third round Gibraltar Open 4–3 by Mark Williams.[21]

2017–18 season

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He dropped off the tour at the end of the 2017–18 season but entered 2018 Q School in a bid to win back his place.[22][23] He subsequently won back his place by beating Dechawat Poomjaeng in the second event final of Q School.[24]

2018–19 season

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Zhao bounced back after a difficult 2017–18 season, reaching his first semi-final at the China Championship early in the season, beating Matthew Stevens, Anthony McGill, Fergal O'Brien, Mark Williams, and Barry Hawkins, before losing 4–6 to Mark Selby.[25] He also reached the quarter-finals of the Welsh Open, losing 2–5 to eventual finalist Stuart Bingham.[26] Perhaps the biggest achievement of the season for Zhao was reaching the final stages of the World Championship for the first time, but he lost 7–10 to Selby in the first round.[27]

2019–20 season

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Zhao maintained his form from the previous season, reaching another quarter-final in the German Masters and progressing to the last 16 in at least four other tournaments. This consistent performance elevated his world ranking to 29th by the end of the season. Ronnie O'Sullivan, Stephen Hendry, and Alan McManus have all once suggested that Zhao would become a leading player in world snooker due to his enormous potential.[28]

2020–21 season

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2021–22 season – UK Champion and breakthrough into the top 16

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In the 2021 UK Championship, Zhao claimed his first Triple Crown title, and first ranking title overall, by beating Belgian Luca Brecel 10–5, in the final. Due to this, he climbed into the Top 16 of the rankings, at number 9, becoming the Chinese number 1 player. He also qualified for the 2022 Masters, and became number 1 on the one-year ranking list.[29][30] At the Masters, he played John Higgins in the first round in a repeat of prior meetings in both the World Grand Prix and the UK Championship, however, he lost 2–6.

In 2022, he reached the final of the 2022 German Masters, having defeated seasoned professionals such as Mark Williams, Tom Ford, the defending champion Judd Trump and Ricky Walden. There, he met fellow professional and countryman Yan Bingtao, whom he defeated by a whitewash of 9–0 to claim the second ranking title of his career in the space of just two months. By doing so, he became only the third player in history to whitewash a player in the final of a ranking event: the last two who did this were Steve Davis and Neil Robertson.

2022–23 season – Suspension

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Zhao was suspended in January 2023 by the sport’s governing body as part of a match-fixing investigation involving ten Chinese players.[4] He was subsequently charged with being concerned in fixing matches on the World Snooker Tour and betting on snooker. Hearings by an independent disciplinary tribunal were initiated in May 2023, and on 6 June 2023 he was given a 20 month ban until 1 September 2024, but was not docked any results or prize money.[5]

When the Chinese Billiards and Snooker Association (the CBSA) upheld the original ban length of 30 months, confusion was created within the media covering the sport: at the time, the WPBSA stated that players not in good standing with their local association could not rejoin the World Snooker Tour, thus suggesting that Zhao would have had to wait until at least July 2025 to begin competing in any amateur snooker tournament. The date would also have meant Zhao could not return to the professional tour until at least the start of the 2026–27 season.[31] However, in subsequent interviews to the media in 2024, Jason Ferguson – the current chairman of the WPBSA – confirmed that the extended ban imposed by the CBSA only applied to events that were sanctioned and governed by the Chinese governing body: it did not apply to any events sanctioned and governed by any other association, including the WPBSA. This confirmation meant that Zhao would be eligible to enter the 2024–25 Q Tour after 1 September 2024, the date that his ban with the WPBSA expired, as well as any other amateur competition that is not sanctioned by the CBSA.[32][33]

2024–25 season – Return to competition on the Q Tour

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Since his suspension has expired on 1 September 2024, Zhao has competed on the Q Tour, hoping to regain professional status, first entering Q Tour Event 2 held in Sofia.[6] He subsequently won Q Tour Event 3 held in October 2024 in Stockholm.[34] During the event, in his 4–1 win over Shaun Liu in the round of 64, he became the first player to make a maximum break on the Q Tour.[7][35]

On 5 November 2024, WPBSA and WST announced that Zhao would be invited to play in the 2024 UK Championship as a WPBSA qualifier, an event he had won in 2021, due to his win in Event 3 on the Q Tour.[36] On 10 November, he won Q Tour Event 4 held in Manchester, defeating Ryan Davies 4–2 in the final. On his run to the trophy, he made another maximum break in his 4–1 quarter-final win over Oliver Sykes, as well as three centuries in defeating Craig Steadman 4–1 in the semi-finals.[37][38]

Performance and rankings timeline

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Tournament 2012/
13 		2013/
14 		2014/
15 		2015/
16 		2016/
17 		2017/
18 		2018/
19 		2019/
20 		2020/
21 		2021/
22 		2022/
23 		2024/
25
Ranking[39][nb 1] [nb 2] [nb 2] [nb 2] [nb 2] [nb 3] 72 [nb 4] 59 29 26 6 [nb 5]
Ranking tournaments
Championship League Non-Ranking Event 3R RR 3R A
Xi'an Grand Prix Tournament Not Held A
Saudi Arabia Masters Tournament Not Held A
English Open Tournament Not Held 2R 2R 2R 4R 2R 2R 2R A
British Open Tournament Not Held 1R 2R A
Wuhan Open Tournament Not Held A
Northern Ireland Open Tournament Not Held 1R 2R 1R 1R 4R LQ LQ A
International Championship 1R 3R 2R 1R 1R 1R 2R 1R Not Held A
UK Championship A A A 1R 2R 2R 1R 3R 2R W 1R 1R
Shoot Out Non-Ranking Event 2R 1R 3R 2R WD 1R WD A
Scottish Open MR Not Held 1R 1R 3R 1R 2R LQ 1R A
German Masters A A A 1R 2R LQ LQ QF LQ W WD[nb 6] A
Welsh Open A A A 1R 1R 1R QF 4R 2R 1R WD A
World Open[nb 7] 1R WR Not Held LQ LQ 1R 1R Not Held
World Grand Prix Not Held NR DNQ DNQ DNQ 1R 2R QF 1R DNQ
Players Championship[nb 8] DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ DNQ 1R DNQ
Tour Championship Tournament Not Held DNQ DNQ DNQ QF DNQ
World Championship A A A LQ LQ LQ 1R A LQ 2R A
Non-ranking tournaments
Shanghai Masters Ranking Not Held A
Champion of Champions NH A A A A A A A A A QF A
World Masters of Snooker Tournament Not Held A
The Masters A A A A A A A A A 1R WD[nb 9] A
Championship League A A A A A A A A WD 2R A A
Former ranking tournaments
Wuxi Classic A WR 3R Tournament Not Held
Australian Goldfields Open A A A LQ Tournament Not Held
Shanghai Masters WR WR 2R A LQ LQ Non-Ranking Not Held NR
Paul Hunter Classic Minor-Ranking Event 2R 4R A NR Tournament Not Held
Indian Open NH A A NH 1R 1R 2R Tournament Not Held
China Open 1R 1R 1R LQ LQ LQ LQ Tournament Not Held
Riga Masters[nb 10] Not Held MR 2R LQ 3R LQ Tournament Not Held
China Championship Tournament Not Held NR LQ SF 3R Tournament Not Held
WST Pro Series Tournament Not Held 2R Not Held
Turkish Masters Tournament Not Held 2R Not Held
Gibraltar Open Not Held MR 3R 3R 1R 3R 3R 2R Not Held
WST Classic Tournament Not Held A NH
European Masters Tournament Not Held LQ 1R 1R 2R 1R LQ 2R NH
Former non-ranking tournaments
Macau Masters Tournament Not Held RR Tournament Not Held
Haining Open Not Held MR A A A 3R NH A Not Held
Hong Kong Masters Tournament Not Held A Tournament Not Held WD NH
Performance Table Legend
LQ lost in the qualifying draw #R lost in the early rounds of the tournament
(WR = Wildcard round, RR = Round robin) 		QF lost in the quarter-finals
SF lost in the semi-finals F lost in the final W won the tournament
DNQ did not qualify for the tournament A did not participate in the tournament WD withdrew from the tournament
NH / Not Held means an event was not held.
NR / Non-Ranking Event means an event is/was no longer a ranking event.
R / Ranking Event means an event is/was a ranking event.
MR / Minor-Ranking Event means an event is/was a minor-ranking event.
  1. ^ It shows the ranking at the beginning of the season
  2. ^ a b c d He was an amateur
  3. ^ New players don't have a ranking
  4. ^ Players qualified through Q School started the season without ranking points
  5. ^ He was an amateur after his ban ended on 1 September 2024
  6. ^ Zhao had initially been entered into the tournament during the qualifying stages played in November, and had progressed to play in the televised stages in Berlin. However, before the main event started, he was suspended by the WPBSA, due to a match-fixing investigation and was subsequently withdrawn from the tournament.
  7. ^ The event was called the Haikou World Open (2012/2013–2013/2014)
  8. ^ The event was called the Players Tour Championship Grand Finals (2010/2011–2012/2013)
  9. ^ Zhao had initially been invited to play in the Masters, but was suspended by the WPBSA the week before the tournament started, due to a match-fixing investigation and was subsequently withdrawn from participating.
  10. ^ The event was called the Riga Open (2014/2015–2015/2016)

Career finals

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Ranking finals: 2 (2 titles)

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Legend
Legend
UK Championship (1–0)
Other (1–0)
Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score
Winner 1. 2021 UK Championship Belgium  Luca Brecel 10–5
Winner 2. 2022 German Masters China  Yan Bingtao 9–0

Pro-am finals: 1 (1 title)

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Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score
Winner 1. 2017 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games Iran  Hossein Vafaei 4–2

Team finals: 2 (1 title)

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Outcome No. Year Championship Team Opponent in the final Score
Runner-up 1. 2017 CVB Snooker Challenge   China   Great Britain 9–26
Winner 1. 2018 Macau Masters England  Barry Hawkins
Wales  Ryan Day
China  Zhou Yuelong 		Wales  Mark Williams
England  Joe Perry
Hong Kong  Marco Fu
China  Zhang Anda 		5–1

Amateur finals: 4 (2 titles)

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Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score
Runner-up 1. 2013 IBSF World Snooker Championship China  Zhou Yuelong 4–8
Runner-up 2. 2015 IBSF World Snooker Championship (2) India  Pankaj Advani 6–8
Winner 1. 2024 Q Tour Event 3 England  Craig Steadman 4–3
Winner 2. 2024 Q Tour Event 4 England  Ryan Davies 4–1

See also

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References

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Citations

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  1. ^ "Zhao Xintong". World Snooker Tour. Archived from the original on 20 December 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2024.
  2. ^ "Zhao beats Brecel to win UK Championship". BBC Sport. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  3. ^ "Zhao Xintong wraps up whitewash victory over Yan Bingtao to secure German Masters victory in Berlin". Eurosport. 30 January 2022. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
  4. ^ a b "UK Championship winner Zhao latest to be suspended". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
  5. ^ a b "WPBSA Statement 6 June 2023". WPBSA. 6 June 2023. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  6. ^ a b "Zhao set for comeback after match-fixing scandal". BBC Sport. 10 September 2024. Archived from the original on 10 September 2024. Retrieved 11 September 2024.
  7. ^ a b "Zhao wins in Stockholm and makes 147". World Snooker Tour. 6 October 2024. Archived from the original on 7 October 2024. Retrieved 8 October 2024.
  8. ^ "Zhao Completes Q Tour Double". 11 November 2024. Archived from the original on 12 November 2024.
  9. ^ a b Davis 2015, p. 352.
  10. ^ Nunns, Hector (27 October 2014). "Zhao Xintong Targets Pro Place by 2015". inside-snooker.com. Archived from the original on 4 December 2021.
  11. ^ "Shanghai Masters 2014: Results". BBC Sport. 3 September 2014.
  12. ^ "Zhou Yuelong Wins IBSF World Championship". prosnookerblog.com. 14 December 2013. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  13. ^ "World Snooker's Q School ends as eight new professionals get tour cards at Meadowside Leisure Centre". Burton Mail. 27 May 2015. Archived from the original on 29 May 2015. Retrieved 27 May 2015.
  14. ^ "Zhao Xintong 2014/2015". snooker.org. Retrieved 19 August 2016.
  15. ^ "Bingham Falls to Delu". World Snooker Tour. 26 October 2015. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020. Retrieved 19 August 2016.
  16. ^ "Zhao Xintong 2015/2016". snooker.org. Retrieved 19 August 2016.
  17. ^ Pathak, Vivek (21 November 2015). "Pankaj crowned with World Snooker title". IBSF. Retrieved 19 August 2016.
  18. ^ "Chinese Duo to Turn Professional". World Snooker Tour. 17 May 2016. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020. Retrieved 19 August 2016.
  19. ^ "O'Sullivan Survives Zhao Test". World Snooker Tour. 13 October 2016. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
  20. ^ "Carter Wins Zhao Battle". World Snooker Tour. 2 February 2017. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
  21. ^ "Zhao Xintong 2016/2017". snooker.org. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
  22. ^ "Zhao Storms Through in Burton". World Snooker Tour. 16 May 2018. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020.
  23. ^ "Q School Event Two – Final Day Line up". World Snooker Tour. 24 May 2018. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020.
  24. ^ "Brown Earns Tour Return". World Snooker Tour. 25 May 2018. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020.
  25. ^ Caulfield, David (29 September 2018). "China Championship Final: Mark Selby vs John Higgins". snookerhq.com. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  26. ^ "Results (Welsh Open 2019)". snooker.org. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
  27. ^ "World Snooker Championship: Mark Selby beats Zhao Xintong – best shots" (video). BBC Sport. 22 April 2019. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  28. ^ "Snooker News – Ronnie O'Sullivan and Stephen Hendry Predict Rapid Rise for Zhao Xintong". Eurosport. 4 May 2020. Retrieved 18 December 2020.
  29. ^ "Snooker's Federer backed to land world title". BBC Sport. 5 December 2021.
  30. ^ "Watch: Zhao beats Brecel to win UK Championship - best shots" (video). BBC Sport. 5 December 2021.
  31. ^ "China's longer bans for snooker match-fixers may apply globally, WPBSA confirms". 22 June 2023.
  32. ^ Haigh, Phil (16 August 2024). "Jason Ferguson gives the latest on the Crucible, snooker's Olympic hopes, a Zhao Xintong return and more". Metro. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  33. ^ Caulfield, David (30 August 2024). "Zhao Xintong ban is ending, so what happens next?". snookerhq.com. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  34. ^ "Zhao Xintong Wins Q Tour Title in Sweden". WPBSA. 6 October 2024.
  35. ^ "Zhao Xintong Hits Historic Q Tour Maximum in Stockholm". WPBSA. 5 October 2024.
  36. ^ "WPBSA Qualifiers Announced for UK Championship". WPBSA. 5 November 2024.
  37. ^ "Zhao Xintong Completes Q Tour Double". WPBSA. 10 November 2024.
  38. ^ "Match Sheet: Semi-final - Craig Steadman vs Xintong Zhao". WPBSA. Retrieved 12 November 2024.
  39. ^ "Ranking History". snooker.org. Retrieved 6 February 2011.

Sources

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