Four consecutive frames! Snooker Xi’an Masters update: World champion suffers upset, Zhao Xintong loses 2-5 to Milkins

On October 9th Beijing time, the second round of the Snooker Xi’an Masters began. In a recently concluded key match, Chinese star Zhao Xintong faced Milkins. Zhao weakened in the latter stages and was soundly defeated 2-5, causing a major upset. It’s truly astonishing—what’s going on with Zhao? Since winning the World Championship, his form has sharply declined, which is baffling to many!

Zhao Xintong is a prominent Chinese player who made a significant breakthrough last year by winning the World Championship as an amateur, entering the ranks of world champions. His world ranking jumped into the top sixteen, currently standing at 11th. However, since the start of this season, Zhao’s performance has plummeted, often exiting in the second round and losing to slightly tougher opponents. His play has been very poor. At this Xi’an Masters, playing on home ground, Zhao hoped to regain his form. He easily won his first-round derby match, but in the second round faced the experienced Milkins, ranked only 56th but still very capable. Zhao needed to be cautious!

After the match began, both players started slowly. Milkins narrowly took the first frame 61-59 with a series of small breaks. Zhao quickly responded by winning two frames in a row, including a break over 50, to lead 2-1. However, afterward Zhao played carelessly and casually, making frequent errors and showing inconsistent attacking. Milkins played more steadily and eventually won four consecutive frames to defeat Zhao 5-2, pulling off a surprising upset!

At present, Zhao’s form is very poor. It’s hard to understand how he won the World Championship. Many expected Zhao to become as strong as Kyren Wilson after that victory, but instead he seems to have taken after Brecel, continuously losing. Perhaps external factors have affected his focus and practice. Hopefully, Zhao will take this seriously, not disappoint his fans, and soon find his best form again!

Written by / Sports Novel

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