A few days ago, China's snooker star Ding Junhui will return to the top 16 in the world rankings and directly qualify for the World Championships, which has aroused heated discussions among netizens.
At the same time, the World Taiwan Federation has officially announced the list of the top 16 seeded players in the World Championships, the top ten are O'Sullivan, Selby, Allen, Trump, Robertson, Murphy, Wilson, Williams, Brecel and Higgins. Chinese snooker twins Zhao Xintong and Yan Bingtao, who were previously banned, did not participate in the competition, and this is the first time that the top 15 seeds in recent World Championships have not had the names of Chinese players.
In this regard, netizens sighed: "The veteran Ding Junhui has become the last fig leaf of the Chinese team!" "Since the beginning of the 2020 season, the Chinese snooker team has performed well in the international arena. The new generation of representative players Yan Bingtao won the Masters Championship, while Zhao Xintong won the British Championship, one of the three major international competitions, and both players reached new heights in their careers. In the German Masters, Zhao Xintong and Yan Bingtao joined hands to advance to the final, helping the Chinese Legion win the championship and runner-up.
Many netizens pointed out that the 2021 season to the 2022 season is the brightest period of Chinese snooker. In addition to Yan Bingtao and Zhao Xintong, young players such as Fan Zengyi and Si Jiahui also made breakthroughs, which made people shine. But unexpectedly, just as the results of the Chinese snooker army were steadily rising, an announcement by the World Federation of Taiwan Affairs caused a devastating blow to the players. The World Federation of Taiwan Compatriots pointed out in the announcement that snooker players such as Liang Wenbo, Li Xing, Lu Ning, Chang Bingyu, Bai Langning, Zhao Jianbo and Chen Zifan were banned and punished for allegedly playing match-fixing and manipulating matches.
Subsequently, the Chinese Billiards Association disqualified Yan Bingtao, Zhao Xintong, Chen Zifan and others from domestic billiards competitions. Netizens sighed helplessly: "Chinese snooker returned to pre-liberation overnight!" Entering the 2023 season, veteran Ding Junhui has become the last hope for Chinese snooker spectators. In the Snooker Tour Championship, with Selby's victory over Ryan, Ding Junhui's world ranking has been confirmed to return to the top 16 after the event, and directly qualify for the World Championships. Ding Junhui also became the only player in the Chinese Legion to go straight to the main stage of the World Championship.
Judging from the top 16 seeds of the World Championship announced by the World Taiwan Federation, O'Sullivan, Selby, Allen, Trump and Robertson are in the top five, and these players will be the favorites for the championship. Murphy, Kay Wilson, Williams, Brecel and Higgins were fifth to tenth, with Ding Junhui coming last. Some netizens said bluntly: "If it weren't for Ding Junhui, the Chinese Legion would be embarrassed!" Others ridiculed, "Who would have thought that a 36-year-old veteran would save the entire Chinese team!" ”
(Luo Treasurer)