In the early morning of April 28, Beijing time, China's "post-00s" rookie Yan Bingtao lost 11-13 to "Golden Left Hand" Mark Williams in the quarterfinals of the 2022 Snooker World Championships, missing the final four of the World Championships. After the game, Yan Bingtao was satisfied with his overall performance, at the same time, he learned a lot of experience from the game and his opponents that is difficult to gain in training, and he hopes to show himself better next time when he fights Crucible.
As the 16th seed of the tournament, Yan Bingtao played steadily in the first two rounds of the main tournament, eliminating qualifier Wakelin and defending champion Selby 10-6 and 13-10 respectively, showing maturity and stability beyond age. In the quarterfinals, Yan Bingtao encountered williams, the No. 8 seed of the tournament and the "bitter lord". He did not give up in the unfavorable situation of falling behind 2-6 in the first stage, and in the second stage, he returned to the "golden left hand" with a 6-2, and the total score came to 8 draws. However, in the third stage, Yan Bingtao's mentality fluctuated in the case of 11-10 lead, and he was eventually eliminated by the opponent for 3 consecutive sets and reversed.
After the game, Yan Bingtao said, "I played 3 rounds of the entire World Championships, except for a few games in one or two stages with some psychological fluctuations, there were no major mistakes at other times, and the game was basically under my control." Facing Williams, who is in such good shape, it is actually normal to lose the game. I went from trailing to equalizing, to leading and being overtaken, until I finally believed I still had a chance. Even after Williams' last set was fast and overscore, he expected to be able to turn the tables after the opponent's mistake. I think this belief is worth affirming. Although I played very poorly in the first stage and the whole person was a little distracted, through adjustment, the second and third stages can be said to be normal play. ”
Talking about the reasons for the loss, Yan Bingtao concluded: "Since the first stage of the semi-finals was the morning game, I was in a state of confusion, missed a lot of balls, and I was very angry. The second stage did not make too many adjustments, that is, I went back to sleep in the middle, and when I went to the field at night, I was very relaxed and more engaged than in the morning. At that time, I felt that I had fallen behind so much anyway, so I let go of the fight. Instead, he played a lot of beautiful balls at this stage, played hard when he had the opportunity, and finally equalized. In the third stage, I really wanted to win, especially when it was 11-10, there was a chance to reverse, or my own superfluous thoughts, resulting in not controlling the white ball, and finally missed the opportunity. ”
For the "bitter lord" Williams, Yan Bingtao has a clearer understanding: "His bench is very accurate, compared with Selby, Williams will play a lot of difficult balls." In fact, we can't talk about the style of play, but I have never found a way to win him. I'm going to win him once before he retires, or I won't have a chance in the future (laughs). The most worth learning about opponents is that the top players will not doubt themselves when making any decision, and they will not have superfluous thoughts to distract themselves from their concentration. Sometimes when I make a mistake, I will be shaken, and my mentality will fluctuate. ”
As for how to improve psychological quality, Yan Bingtao frankly said that there is no better way, only by continuous accumulation and precipitation, can we continuously improve. "Actually, my legs were a little shaky when I played in the first round, but I quickly got used to it. Even when you are lagging behind, you can adjust and do not give up easily. Playing in front of so many live spectators is quite enjoyable. ”
Higgins has previously said that the player will have a long break in the first two rounds of the World Championships, but it will not show its fangs until the third round (quarter-finals). Yan Bingtao felt the same way this time, "This time in the third round, I obviously felt too tired, and my spirit was not as full as it was at the beginning. I hadn't hit this stage before, and I didn't realize it at all. You know, the semi-finals and finals of the World Championships are 17 wins in 33 innings and 18 wins in 35 sets, respectively, even if I pass this level, my physical strength and energy will be problematic in the semi-finals. ”
As the only "post-00s" player in the quarterfinals of the World Championships, Yan Bingtao's performance is undoubtedly worthy of expectations from the outside world. Billiards "Emperor" Hendry said after watching the game, "I am optimistic that Yan Bingtao can win the World Championship before Zhao Xintong, this venue is suitable for his play, and he also has all the conditions to win the championship here." ”
"Rockets" O'Sullivan said: "Winners are born, you have a hard time copying them, let alone cultivating them." Many people are already winners as soon as they enter the industry, and Yan Bingtao is one of them. In evaluating Yan Bingtao and his predecessor Ding Junhui, O'Sullivan still voted for Yan Bingtao, "The two still have a big gap in achievements, but if Ding has a little Bit of Yan Bingtao's winning temperament, he may have won 3 to 4 world championships." ”
Today, Ding Junhui's world ranking has fallen to 20 places away, and the competitive state continues to be sluggish. The rise of rookies such as Yan Bingtao and Zhao Xintong has made fans more look forward to the new king of Chinese snooker.