China News Agency, Beijing, February 28. The 2022 European Snooker Masters finals ended on the 28th, Beijing time. The 21-year-old Chinese teenager Fan Zhengyi defeated “Rocket” O’Sullivan 10:9, winning his first career The ranking champion, together with Zhao Xintong and Yan Bingtao, has become the “troika” of Chinese snooker in the “post-Ding Junhui era”.
In this European Masters, the previously unknown Fan Zhengyi came out as a dark horse, linking many famous players such as K. Wilson, Yan Bingtao, Gilbert and Dortmund all the way, and finally joined his idol O’Sullivan. Join the finals.
World No. 80 and No. 2 in the world, entering the ranking finals for the first time and owning 38 ranking championships, aged 21 and 47… This is a series of data comparisons between Fan Zhengyi and O’Sullivan before the game. But at the beginning of the game, the “balance” of victory was not influenced by these historical data. The game was evenly matched from beginning to end, with the score from 4:4 to 6:6, 8:8, 9:9 , In the decisive game, the calm and calm Fan Zhengyi defeated “Rocket” O’Sullivan with 92 points in a single shot.
This is Fan Zhengyi’s first ranking championship in his career, and he is also the sixth Chinese snooker player to win a ranking championship following Ding Junhui, Fu Jiajun, Liang Wenbo, Yan Bingtao and Zhao Xintong.
In recent years, new stars in the Chinese snooker field have emerged one following another. In 2019, “post-00s” Yan Bingtao won the ranking championship for the first time at the Snooker Masters. In 2021, he won the first three major championships of his career at the Snooker Masters. In December 2021, 24-year-old Zhao Xintong won the British Championship, and then joined the German Masters final with Yan Bingtao, and won his second ranking championship in less than two months.
Today, Fan Zhengyi, who was born in 2001, has also entered the ranking championship “family”. The rise of three young players shows the bright future of Chinese snooker in the “post-Ding Junhui era”.
After winning his first ranking championship, Fan Zhengyi’s world ranking rose from 80th to 31st, surpassing Ding Junhui, the former Chinese snooker leader who was ranked 32nd. Zhao Xintong, who was ranked 7th, ranked the highest among Chinese players, while Yan Bingtao was temporarily ranked 13th.
O’Sullivan, who missed his 39th ranking championship, gave a sincere evaluation to Fan Zhengyi, believing that “his offense is amazing, he is obviously a better player and worthy of this victory”. Regarding Yan Bingtao, Zhao Xintong, Fan Zhengyi and other Chinese teenagers winning the championship successively, the evergreen tree in the world snooker field said: “They inspire each other and make progress, which is a good thing for the development of China and the world snooker sport. “
After the game, Fan Zhengyi posted on his personal social media for the first time, saying: “It’s really not easy to go all the way. Once upon a time, I also encountered relegation. Many people said that Fan Zhengyi was not suitable for a career, but I always believed in myself. It can be done, and today I finally realized my dream! I will continue to work hard.” (End)
