Ken Doherty sends out warning about World Snooker Championship star who served huge ban

BBC pundit has warned snooker stars that Zhao Xintong could win the after his lengthy ban. Zhao secured his place at the Crucible Theatre by on Tuesday.

The 28-year-old battled through four preliminary rounds as to make it to the Sheffield venue stages. The Chinese sensation is competing as an amateur, having showcased his impressive skills in this season's Q-Tour.

Zhao, who last played at the Crucible in 2022, was embroiled in a major betting scandal that shook the foundations of the sport. He was later cleared of the more serious match-fixing offences but was slapped with a 20-month ban.

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And despite losing momentum since his 2021 UK Championship victory, Zhao has turned heads with his recent performances since returning to the competitive fold.

That has led 1997 champion Doherty to name him as a "dark horse" for the tournament, warning favourites such as Kyren Wilson, John Higgins and Mark Selby that there is another major player in the mix.

“There’s a few dark horses in there, and a couple of them would be Chinese,” Doherty said to Gambling.com, before naming Wu Yize as another potential challenger.

“One is Zhao Xintong, who’s won four matches. If Kyren Wilson and Zhao Xintong come through those first matches, they will play each other in the last 16.

“That would be a good test for Kyren Wilson. Zhao would be a dark horse for me. When he did break the rules, he wasn’t gambling on the matches or he wasn’t throwing matches like some of the players who were banned.”

Zhao received a 20-month suspension for his role in the major match-fixing scandal back in 2023. He accepted the charges of betting on a game he knew had been thrown while also being party to another player fixing two contests on separate occasions in March 2022.

Doherty went on to add: “But he’s served his ban and took it on the chin. He’s a wonderful talent and he’s welcome back into the sport. I think people will love watching him play, because he’s a gifted young man.

“The way he plays the game so gracefully – he reminds me of a young Jimmy White, the way he plays. He’s that good, he’s that talented.

"He’s already won the UK championship before his ban. I think he’ll go and win another big one, and he’ll be at the top of the game very, very soon.”

Zhao will have his work cut out straight away though, with the Chinese player taking on highly-rated Welshman Jak Jones first up on Sunday.

Jones, 31, went on a miraculous run at last year's World Championship, reaching the final before falling to an 18-14 defeat against Wilson.