Zhang Anda Stuns World Champion Zhao Xintong in Dramatic Respot Thriller at China Open

The Short Version

Zhang Anda produced one of the most nerve-shredding first-round performances you'll see all season, coming back from 3-0 down to defeat last year's world champion Zhao Xintong 6-5 at the China Open — the deciding frame settled by a respotted black. If you had Zhang in any 'first-round upset' market, take the money and run. If you didn't, there are still compelling reasons to get behind him in Round Two.

What Happened

It looked bleak for Zhang Anda early doors. The world number 19 found himself three frames behind against a player ranked third in the world and carrying genuine world championship pedigree. To his enormous credit, Zhang clawed his way back, eventually moving ahead 5-4 and appearing to be within touching distance of a routine close. Then Zhao — as world champions tend to do — refused to lie down, forcing a deciding frame that descended into the kind of chaos snooker fans absolutely live for.

With Zhang 57-0 ahead in the final frame, a finish looked academic. Zhao, however, compiled a response that left both men on the black ball, scores level, the entire match balanced on a single pot. Zhang potted the black to force the respot — the rule used as a tiebreaker when the frame finishes all square — and then, under conditions that would reduce most professionals to jelly, held his nerve to pot the respotted black and win the match. Extraordinary scenes.

"Today was just my day," Zhang said afterwards, with admirable understatement. "I hope that I can go far in this tournament. I don't want two pots of the black again — I was too nervous." For his part, Zhao was brutally honest: "I made far too many mistakes today and I probably didn't deserve to win. I played too badly and there was nothing I could do about it." When world champions speak like that, you know something genuinely strange just unfolded.

Context: How Rare Is a Respot Decider?

For those newer to the sport, a respotted black is vanishingly rare at professional level. It requires both players to have identical scores at the end of a frame, with the black ball being the last one potted — a sequence of events that demands both precision and a certain amount of chaos in equal measure. It's the snooker equivalent of a penalty shootout, and it produces the same white-knuckle, watch-through-your-fingers tension. Zhang has now experienced it twice — he referenced those "two pots of the black" — suggesting this isn't entirely uncharted territory for him, though it's clearly not something he relishes.

Elsewhere in Round One: Higgins Falls Flat

Zhang's result wasn't the only shock in the opening round. World number five John Higgins — a four-time world champion and always dangerous on his day — was eliminated 6-4 by Stuart Bingham. The 2015 world champion has always been capable of big results on his best form, and a 6-4 scoreline suggests this was no fluke. Higgins' exit removes another seeded player from the draw and opens up the path considerably for the survivors.

Round Two: Zhang vs Wakelin

Zhang now faces England's Chris Wakelin in the second round. Wakelin is a solid, experienced professional who won't roll over, but on the back of a match like this, you'd be tempted to fancy Zhang to carry some momentum. The caveat, of course, is that matches like the one Zhang just played through can take an enormous physical and psychological toll. He'll need time to decompress — whether the schedule allows that is another matter.

The Pick: Zhang Anda to Reach the Quarter-Finals

This is speculative, but hear me out. Zhang has shown genuine fighting spirit, the mental resilience to pot a black ball under maximum pressure, and — crucially — he's now on the right side of a wide-open draw following Higgins' exit. At the odds available for him to reach the last eight, there's interest. Check Bet365 and William Hill for tournament outright markets — his quarter-final odds should represent decent each-way value given the context.

The Risk: A player who just survived a five-set battle against a world champion, in front of a home crowd, with a respot finish, may well be emotionally spent. If Wakelin comes out sharp, this could be a banana skin. Back accordingly — stakes appropriate to the risk.

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