Bai Langning was one of five Chinese players handed a suspension in December 2022 in relation to a match-fixing scandal, with his ban now having come to an end
Bai Langning is now eligible to return to professional snooker, less than three years after his involvement in a match-fixing controversy that shook the sport to its core. Bai was only 20 years old when officials imposed a ban in December 2022.
The subsequent month, the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) brought charges against him for "being concerned in fixing a match on the World Snooker Tour". The fixture in question was a British Open qualifying round encounter against Zhao Xintong, which occurred in September 2022.
In June 2023, the governing body confirmed Bai's ban had been shortened from an original four-year term, owing to his guilty plea and "early admission". This left him free to return August 6 of this year - something confirmed by the WPBSA to Express Sport.
Now aged 23, he is permitted to return to competition and reconstruct his career outside his home country. The Chinese Billiards and Snooker Association, a separate body, organises tournaments within China, and his suspension there remains active until December 2026.
Bai was among five Chinese players who received suspensions in December 2022 concerning the match-fixing controversy, following allegations he had conspired to manipulate a British Open encounter. Lu Ning, Li Hang, Zhao Jianbo and Chang Bingyu were the remaining four suspended competitors, with Lu being the sole player ranked within the world's top 50 at that time.
Additional bans were imposed in subsequent months, with two players - Liang Wenbo and Li Hang - receiving lifetime prohibitions. Bai has been regularly paying towards financial sanctions following his ban. Bai's standing with the CBSA will be checked by the WPBSA before he can participate in China.
Bai, who turned professional as a teenager, has only once played at the main draw of the British Open. In the 2021 edition of the competition, he made it to the second round, defeating Ashley Carty in the opening round but losing 3-1 to fellow countryman Pang Junxu.
The next year, Bai participated in qualifying but was defeated 4-1 by Zhao Xintong - another one of the 10 Chinese players suspended as part of the investigation. Zhao, who reached the second round of the British Open in 2022, went on to win the World Championship in 2025 after serving his own ban.
This year's British Open is already underway, although Bai is not participating despite his ban ending. Zhao, however, is in the main draw after narrowly avoiding an upset against Ashley Hugill, setting up a round of 64 meeting with Stuart Bingham.
The tie will be a meeting of two world champions. Bingham tasted success at The Crucible in 2015 while Zhao, aged 28, won the world title after coming through qualifying.
"I know about the pressure, but it is very hard to control," said Zhao, who is continuing to rebuild his career following his ban. "So I have to learn from Ding [Junhui] and Ronnie [O'Sullivan] because they do it well and play well in the moment [when under pressure]."