Recently, a focus battle in the second round of the Snooker World Championships, China's post-00s rising star Yan Bingtao eliminated the defending champion Selby 13-10 "upset", becoming the focus of hot discussion at home and abroad. In the game, one of Yan Bingtao's action behaviors caused controversy in the industry after the game, in the 18th round of the game, when Yan Bingtao chased points with his backhand, the key coffee ball hitting line was suspected of being blocked by the blue ball, Yan Bingtao after observing and trying for a long time, asked the referee on duty whether he could wipe the white ball, and the result was resolved by the referee, and this behavior was criticized by many commentators and famous experts after the game as a little clever.
The situation occurred in the 18th game of the game, when Yan Bingtao had a 10-7 lead over Selby in the big score. After the end of the previous two stages of the game, Yan Bingtao had already taken a 9-7 lead, and at the beginning of the third stage, Yan Bingtao went to the next city to further expand the lead. In the crucial 18th inning, Selby took the lead first, Yan Bingtao chased the points with his back hand, when playing to the clear color ball stage, the coffee ball near the bottom bag, the lower ball line was not very obvious, the blue ball was suspected of blocking a little line of sight, so Yan Bingtao has been observing and trying.
In response to this situation, Yan Bingtao thought for up to 3 minutes, during which the opponent Selby, the referee and the audience all laughed, because this batting choice will determine the outcome and trend of the game, and Yan Bingtao's hesitation can only be an embarrassing and bitter smile. Perhaps because the scene situation is extremely tense, so Yan Bingtao turned to ask the referee on duty Rob Spencer if he could help wipe the mother ball white ball, but the referee smiled and rejected him, and then Yan Bingtao still made up his mind to continue to attack the coffee ball, with a strong hit, the coffee ball fell into the bag, and Yan Bingtao also took advantage of the situation, completed the super point reversal, won the victory, and took an 11-7 lead.
Regarding Yan Bingtao's behavior of asking the referee to help wipe the mother ball under the circumstances at that time, did it constitute a violation? After the game, well-known commentators David Hendon, snooker star Jimmy White and McManus all expressed disapproval of Yan Bingtao's behavior, and even had the intention of playing clever and trying to profit. But in fact, the rules stipulate that under any circumstance in the game, the player can apply to the referee to wipe the mother ball and the target ball on the table, because a long time hitting the ball will cause static electricity, so Yan Bingtao's behavior at that time can be understood as the normal use of the rules.
Afterwards, McManus updated and replied to his comments, saying that he also reflected and reviewed the game, and his previous view of Yan Bingtao was wrong, the situation in the game was quite tricky, and the players made reasonable and rapid responses to the situation, which was a normal move, but the situation was special at the time, so it may be regarded as wanting to illegally profit.
Yan Bingtao also responded to his behavior at that time, "I chose to let the referee clean up the white ball because I was too nervous. I wanted to adjust the atmosphere and try to relax myself. I know the referee will not agree to my request. I was just joking with him to ease the tension. I will try to win the next game. In fact, in such a high-pressure game situation, the players are also normal people, and any behavior and action made at the moment has accidents and suddenness, but Yan Bingtao's behavior is not illegal, and it is a normal process, and the referee only responded from his professional point of view, which has no impact on the outcome of the final game."