Chang Bingyu has returned to the World Snooker Tour after the conclusion of his match-fixing ban and has kicked off his first season back as a professional with consecutive victories.
Still just 22 years old, Chang was given a two-year ban in June 2023 for fixing a match, which kept him out of snooker until December 2024 – backdated to his original suspension.
In April he comfortably won the Asia-Pacific Snooker Championship to book his place back on the professional circuit and has made a bright start to his return.
It didn’t look like it was going to be a winning return when Chang fell 4-1 down to Daniel Wells in Wuhan Open qualifying on Monday, with the Welshman knocking in two centuries.
However, the Chinese youngster won the last four frames, with breaks of 84, 60 and 70 to dramatically claim a 5-4 win.
It was a more comfortable victory on Thursday as he beat India’s Kreishh Gurbaxani 4-2 in British Open qualifying, with breaks of 118, 93, 64 and 70.
There is now every chance that Chang can make a big impression on the World Snooker Tour, maybe not to the same level, but as world champion Zhao Xintong has done since returning from his own ban.
Chang was a wildly talented junior player, winning the IBSF World Snooker Championship at just 16 years old, having made a maximum in tournament play at just 14.
His first stint on the professional tour did not yield many notable results, but has clearly spent his time away from the pro ranks working on his game, preparing for a return.
Why was Chang Bingyu banned?
Chang admitted to fixing a match against Jamie Jones at the 2022 British Open, but did so as a result of pressure and influence from Liang Wenbo, who subsequently received a lifetime ban.
The Disciplinary Commission’s findings read that Chang ‘accepted that he on 28th September 2022 had fixed a snooker match that he was playing in.’
He gave evidence to the commission that he was called by Liang Wenbo on the morning of the match ‘with a threatening tone’ and told that Liang ‘had placed a lot of money on his bet without my knowledge, for my match with Jamie Jones that evening.’
Chang ‘reluctantly agreed’ but said he never received the money he was told he would be given for the fix.
The independent tribunal’s findings on Chang read: ‘We have found that Chang fixed or contrived, or was a party to an effort to fix or contrive, the result or score of a snooker match on one occasion.
‘We note that, at the time that his match fixing took place, Chang was aged 20. He was young and impressionable and under the influence of Liang, of whom he was scared. Chang has given evidence that he thought Liang would take action against him if he did not comply with Liang’s demands. We accept that, in all probability, Chang would not have offended absent that element of threat. He was also suffering financial difficulties at the time, he has shown genuine remorse for his actions and he admitted his office at the earliest opportunity. There is no suggestion that Chang committed any betting offence.’
10 players were banned in June 2023 as part of the match-fixing investigation, with Zhao and Chang the first two to return to the professional circuit.
Zhao did not fix a match himself so received the shortest ban, but was punished for being party to another player fixing matches and betting on snooker.
Chang received the shortest ban of those found guilty of match-fixing, due to the circumstances surrounding his case as he was believed to be caught up in the scandal against his will.
The 22-year-old will look to keep up his 100 per cent record early in the season when he plays in the Championship League on July 3 against Ricky Walden, Steven Hallworth and Rob Milkins.
The Disciplinary Commission’s Findings on the 10 players
- Liang Wenbo has been found in to be in breach of the Conduct Regulations as follows:
• That he fixed or was a party to fix five snooker matches between 24th July and 28th September 2022
• That he solicited, induced, enticed, persuaded, encouraged, or facilitated players to fix nine matches between 24th July and 13th December 2022
• That between 1st September 2019 and 31st December 2022 he bet on snooker matches in breach of the rules.
• That he behaved in conduct that was corrupt by threatening another player and making him delete his messages on his phone.
• That he threatened another player to seek to persuade him not to assist the WPBSA enquiry.
• That he on or after 1st September 2022 when aware of the WPBSA enquiry covered up or attempted to cover up his involvement in match fixing by deleting messages on his mobile phone and by requesting that other players deleted messages on their phones.
• That he failed to cooperate with the WPBSA enquiry by failing to attend interviews and provide material requested by the WPBSA enquiry. - Li Hang has been found to be in breach of the Conduct Regulations as follows:
• That he fixed or was a party to fix five snooker matches between 24th July and 29th September 2022
• That he solicited, induced, enticed, persuaded, encouraged or facilitated players to fix seven snooker matches between 24th July and 13th December 2022.
• That between 1st September 2019 and 31st December 2022 he bet on snooker matches in breach of the rules.
• That he on or after 1st September 2022 when aware of the WPBSA enquiry covered up or attempted to cover up his involvement in match fixing by deleting messages on his mobile phone and by requesting that other players deleted messages on their phones. - Lu Ning was found not to have been involved in inducing others to fix matches. He accepted the following:
• That in the 2014-15 season he fixed three snooker matches that he played in
• That he on 23rd July 2022 he fixed one snooker match that he played in.
• That between 1st September 2019 and 31st December 2022 he bet on snooker matches in breach of the rules.
• That he on or after 1st September 2022 when aware of the WPBSA enquiry covered up or attempted to cover up his involvement in match fixing by deleting messages on his mobile phone. - Yan Bingtao accepted the following:
• That he on 29th August 2016 fixed one match that he played in
• That he between 3rd March 2022 and 29th September 2022 fixed three snooker matches that he played in.
• That between 1st September 2019 and 31st December 2022 he bet on snooker matches in breach of the rules. - Zhao Xintong accepted the following:
• That he on 3rd March and 11th March 2022 he was a party to another player fixing two snooker matches.
• That between 1st September 2019 and 31st December 2022 he bet on snooker matches in breach of the rules. - Zhao Jianbo accepted the following:
• That he on 26th August 2022 fixed a snooker match that he was playing in
• That he bet on the snooker match that he fixed. - Chang Bingyu accepted that he on 28th September 2022 had fixed a snooker match that he was playing in.
- Bai Langning accepted that he on 26th September 2022 had fixed a snooker match that he was playing in.
- Chen Zifan accepted the following:
• That he between 24th July and 23rd August 2022 fixed or contrived, or were a party to an effort to fix or contrive the result or score of three snooker matches that he played in - Zhang Jiankang accepted the following:
• That he on 22nd July 2022 fixed a match that he was playing in
• That between 1st September 2019 and 31st December 2022 he bet on snooker matches in breach of the rules.
• That he failed to provide information requested by the WPBSA
Punishments
- Liang Wenbo has been given a lifetime from snooker and is to pay £43,000 in costs.
- Li Hang has been given a lifetime from snooker and is to pay £43,000 in costs.
- Lu Ning has been given an 8 year suspension, reduced following early admissions and his plea of guilty, to 5 years and 4 months until 6 April 2028. He is to pay £7,500 in costs.
- Yan Bingtao has been given a 7 year and 6 months suspension, reduced following early admissions and plea of guilty, to 5 years until 11 December 2027. He is to pay £7,500 in costs.
- Zhao Xintong has been given a 2 year and 6 months suspension, reduced following early admissions and his plea of guilty, to 1 year and 8 months until 1 September 2024. He is to pay £7,500 in costs.
- Zhao Jianbo has been given a 3 year and 6 months suspension, reduced following early admissions and his plea of guilty, to 2 years and 4 months until 7 April 2025. He is to pay £7,500 in costs.
- Chang Bingyu has been given a 3 year suspension, reduced following early admissions and his plea of guilty, to 2 years until 7 December 2024. He is to pay £7,500 in costs.
- Bai Langning has been given a 4 year suspension, reduced following early admissions and his plea of guilty, to 2 years and 8 months until 6 August 2025. He is to pay £7,500 in costs.
- Chen Zifan has been given a 7 year and 6 months suspension, reduced following early admissions and his plea of guilty, to 5 years until 20 December 2027. He is to pay £7,500 in costs.
- Zhang Jiankang has been given a 4 year and 5 months suspension, reduced following early admissions and his plea of guilty, to 2 years and 11 months until 1 December 2025. He is to pay £7,500 in costs.
