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AMATEUR ace Zhao Xintong has set his sights on a controversial Crucible crown – thanks to eye surgery.
The day after three-time world champion potter Mark Williams said he was booked to have a lens replacement op, the part-time Chinese cueist announced he had his eyes corrected during his exile from the sport.
AlamyXintong, 28, is third favourite for the title – at odds of 9-2 – behind Judd Trump and Mark Selby and now faces debutant Lei Peifan in the second round.
Yet the elephant in the room is the 20-month suspension he served after he was done for betting breaches in a match-fixing storm that involved nine other countrymen.
Xintong hit a 142 in frame five of his 10-4 win over last year’s runner-up Jak Jones and he said: “For two years I had no tournament.
“But I kept practising and I had laser surgery because although I won the UK Championship and the German Masters, I could not see properly.
“Now I can see everything and I think I’m stronger than I was two years ago.
“I’m very happy [that people say I can win it] but I will just try my best. I’ve played four qualifying matches so it gives me some confidence.”
Jones, 31, said: “Xintong is a top-16 player who played the qualifiers and you could see it in his sharpness.
“He put me under so much pressure and he will be hard to stop.
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“I don’t see anyone who’s playing better than him. His long potting is good, his scoring is good, and he’s good tactically.
“I don’t see anyone better than him in this tournament.”
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No.8 seed Mark Allen made round two for the 14th time in 19 appearances as he beat qualifier Fan Zhengyi 10-6, having been 3-0 behind.
The Pistol, who hit breaks of 105 and 102, now faces Chris Wakelin on Thursday afternoon.
List of all-time Snooker World Champions
BELOW is a list of snooker World Champions by year.
The record is for the modern era, widely considered as dating from the 1968-69 season, when the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) took control of the sport.
The first World Championships ran from 1927 – with a break from 1941-45 because of World War II and 1958-63 because of a dispute in the sport.
Joe Davis (15), Fred Davis and John Pulman (both 8) were the most successful players during that period.
Stephen Hendry and Ronnie O’Sullivan share the record for the most titles in the modern era, with seven each.
- 1969 – John Spencer
- 1970 – Ray Reardon
- 1971 – John Spencer
- 1972 – Alex Higgins
- 1973 – Ray Reardon (2)
- 1974 – Ray Reardon (3)
- 1975 – Ray Reardon (4)
- 1976 – Ray Reardon (5)
- 1977 – John Spencer (2)
- 1978 – Ray Reardon (6)
- 1979 – Terry Griffiths
- 1980 – Cliff Thorburn
- 1981 – Steve Davis
- 1982 – Alex Higgins (2)
- 1983 – Steve Davis (2)
- 1984 – Steve Davis (3)
- 1985 – Dennis Taylor
- 1986 – Joe Johnson
- 1987 – Steve Davis (4)
- 1988 – Steve Davis (5)
- 1989 – Steve Davis (6)
- 1990 – Stephen Hendry
- 1991 – John Parrott
- 1992 – Stephen Hendry (2)
- 1993 – Stephen Hendry (3)
- 1994 – Stephen Hendry (4)
- 1995 – Stephen Hendry (5)
- 1996 – Stephen Hendry (6)
- 1997 – Ken Doherty
- 1998 – John Higgins
- 1999 – Stephen Hendry (7)
- 2000 – Mark Williams
- 2001 – Ronnie O’Sullivan
- 2002 – Peter Ebdon
- 2003 – Mark Williams (2)
- 2004 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (2)
- 2005 – Shaun Murphy
- 2006 – Graeme Dott
- 2007 – John Higgins (2)
- 2008 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (3)
- 2009 – John Higgins (3)
- 2010 – Neil Robertson
- 2011 – John Higgins (4)
- 2012 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (4)
- 2013 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (5)
- 2014 – Mark Selby
- 2015 – Stuart Bingham
- 2016 – Mark Selby (2)
- 2017 – Mark Selby (3)
- 2018 – Mark Williams (3)
- 2019 – Judd Trump
- 2020 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (6)
- 2021 – Mark Selby (4)
- 2022 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (7)
- 2023 – Luca Brecel
- 2024 – Kyren Wilson
Most World Titles (modern era)
- 7 – Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O’Sullivan
- 6 – Ray Reardon, Steve Davis
- 4 – John Higgins, Mark Selby
- 3 – John Spencer, Mark Williams
- 2 – Alex Higgins
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