'You don't do that in snooker' - Jimmy White not impressed after Yan Bingtao asks for white to be cleaned on tough shot
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Updated 25/04/2022 at 16:47 GMT
Yan Bingtao is not known for being a fast player, but he took it to extremes when taking three minutes to take on a pot. It was worth it in the end as he potted a tough brown which set him up to take a frame against Mark Selby. Watch the World Championship and other top snooker live on Eurosport and discovery+.
‘In future you don’t do that’ - Yan Bingtao warned about unwritten rule
Yan Bingtao versus Mark Selby always had the feel of a match that could burn the midnight oil, as neither is famed for swashbuckling snooker, with caution often the watchword.
Matches often tend to last a long time when three minutes are taken over a shot. But that was what Yan did in the 18th frame of their second-round encounter at the World Championship on Saturday.
On this occasion, it’s fair to say he was entitled to take his time after Selby had set a fiendish puzzle.
The defending champion’s shot went completely awry and he went back to his seat with a worried look on his face as it appeared he had left Yan a shot at the brown. Or had he?
With the camera right behind the pocket, it was not clear whether there was a path past the blue to pot the brown.
Yan had a look. Had another look. And a few more looks for good measure, and even contemplated playing it left handed. He got up and down at least three times, much to the amusement of the crowd.
“This is one of those where you don’t know how it goes until you play it, by which time it’s too late,” said Neal Foulds on Eurosport commentary.
He also tried a bit of gamesmanship by asking to have the cue ball cleaned. Referee Rob Spencer gave that request short shrift.
“That’s out of order, really,” David Hendon said. “There’s no chance of Rob Spencer succumbing to that request.”
Mark Selby did not look impressed with the request, which was a viewpoint adopted by Jimmy White and Alan McManus in the Eurosport studio.
"It's an unwritten rule amongst snooker players," White said. "Fair play Rob Spencer has stood his ground and said no. He could put it back slightly wrong and Bingtao then could have an easy shot.
"It is something you don't do. It might have been Bingtao being under pressure and thinking of anything to win, but you don't do that in snooker."
McManus added: "We don't know what was in Yan's mind, as to how underhand he was thinking. I don't like seeing it, Mark Selby did not like it and most of the players on tour won't like it."
McManus later clarified on Twitter:
When he got down on the shot, Yan knocked it in with the rest - to a roar of delight from the crowd.
The drama was not over, as he later faced a tough pink to seal the frame. Again he took him time, and again it went in.
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Yan hesitates on difficult brown and then nails it to perfection, goes on to win the frame
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