THERE has already been a Chinese snooker world champion. In March 2024, 20-year-old Bai Yulu defeated Mink Nutcharut of Thailand 6-5 to win the world championship on the World Women's Snooker Tour.

Having been mooted for several years, a Chinese champion on the main World Snooker Tour (WST) is also expected sooner rather than later, and the number of players to have qualified for the World Championship at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield this year shows why.

A record 10 Chinese players will take to the Crucible stage this year, as Lei Peifan, Zhao Xintong, Fan Zhengyi, Pang Junxu, Wu Yize and Zhou Yuelong came through the qualifiers to join top-16 players Ding Junhui, Xiao Guodong, Si Jiahui and Zhang Anda in the last 32 of the tournament.

It is the most representation any country other than England has had at this stage of the championship and the previous record for Chinese players qualifying for the Crucible stage of the World Championship was six, back in 2019.

This year, six Chinese players came through the first round at the Crucible to reach the last 16, meaning China is now the most represented nation at this stage of this year’s tournament (England has five).

The depth of quality in Chinese snooker, as seen in the qualifiers at the English Institute of Sport (EIS) in Sheffield in recent years, means there is a chance that Chinese players could outnumber English players at the World Championship in the years to come.

It also means that it’s surely only a matter of time before there is a Chinese world champion on the WST.

One of the most talented of the Chinese contingent is 28-year-old Zhao Xintong, who is at times reminiscent of a young Jimmy White. White himself has compared Zhao to Ronnie O’Sullivan.

“He is not slow, he floats round the table, and his shot time is very quick,” White said on TNT Sports after the first session of Zhao’s match against Jak Jones.

“He played snooker today like [Ronnie O’Sullivan] when he is on top form. He was just magical.

“Every now and again in sport, you get people like [Seve] Ballesteros, Tiger Woods, and in snooker, you have got Ronnie O’Sullivan. Now this kid has come along.

“He is a phenomenal player, a phenomenal scorer, we just love everything about him.”

Zhao is technically an amateur at this year’s tournament, having worked his way back following suspension for his involvement in a match-fixing scandal.

The ringleaders of that match-fixing operation, Liang Wenbo and Li Hang, both received lifetime bans.

Zhao received the shortest suspension of the 10 players involved due to his limited involvement and the fact that he did not fix any matches, as covered in our tournament preview (M Star April 12-13), and is the first of them to return to the sport.

Prior to his suspension, Zhao was one of the players in the game with the highest potential. He has returned with some impressive performances, which include defeating Jones 10-4 in the first round at the Crucible last week.

While Zhao has been away, several other young Chinese players have emerged, while some older players have improved on their previous form to work their way up the rankings.

Si Jiahui lit up the World Championship in 2023 when he reached the semi-finals only to lose to the eventual champion that year, Luca Brecel.

In doing so, the then 20-year-old Si became the youngest semi-finalist since Ronnie O’Sullivan in 1996 to reach that stage.

Had he gone on and won it, as looked possible at the time, he would have become the youngest-ever champion.

That such a feat was being talked about as a serious possibility shows how close a Chinese player is to winning the tournament.

Chinese players have won three WST tournaments this season. Xiao Guodong defeated Si in the Wuhan Open final, Ding Junhui won the International Championship, and Lei Peifan defeated Wu Yize in the Scottish Open final.

The inimitable Wu also reached the final of the English Open, where he lost narrowly to Neil Robertson.

From 36-year-old Xiao Guodong, who is enjoying one of his best seasons at a relatively late stage in his career compared to some of his compatriots, to 21-year-olds Wu and Lei Peifan, there is progress and potential right across Chinese snooker.

Having snooker academies in Sheffield, such as Victoria’s Snooker Academy and the Ding Junhui Snooker Academy, has helped Chinese players settle and improve in a city that revolves around snooker, especially when the World Championship comes to the Crucible Theatre at this time of year.

It helps these players feel at home there and in the game generally, and a handful are now also giving post-match interviews in English.

It also helps that the WST has recognised how important China has become to the sport, and hosted five of its tournaments in the country this season with great success.

The biggest result at the Crucible so far this year has been Lei Peifan’s defeat of reigning champion Kyren Wilson in the first round. Lei won the match 10-9 in a final frame decider, in what was a courageous showing on his Crucible debut.

Lei’s reward for doing so was a match with Zhao in the last 16, which will play its second session today and a potential third tomorrow. It promises to be one of the highlights of this year’s tournament.

Another highlight will be Ding Junhui’s last 16 meeting with Luca Brecel, which begins this weekend. Brecel is the most entertaining player to watch on the professional tour, but Ding has the ability to clear the table should one of the Belgian’s flamboyant attacking shots go awry.

Elsewhere, in another headline-grabbing match, Pang Junxu, who defeated Zhang Anda in the first round, faces the returning Ronnie O’Sullivan, while Si Jiahui faces Ben Woollaston, and Xiao Guodong will battle it out with John Higgins.

It would be a surprise not to see at least one Chinese player still in the tournament come the semi-final stage, and from there, any player who hits form at the right time across the gruelling best of 33 semis and best of 35 finals can take the crown.

The women’s world champion Bai Yulu was present in the qualifiers at the EIS earlier in the month, joining a considerable Chinese contingent at that stage of the tournament.

This combination of talent and numbers now in the game means it’s surely inevitable that a Chinese player will soon be lifting the trophy at the Crucible.