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Ssb - the liang and the short of it...
Hmmm...
Liang Wenbo's match in the final qualifying round of the Shanghai Masters, which was due to be played in Prestatyn on Thursday, will now be held at the venue in China.
Liang has been unable to get his work permit.
I have sympathy for the Chinese players - Mei Xiwen and Li Hang also failed to get visas. It seems ridiculous really that Chinese professionals have to travel to the UK to try and qualify for a tournament in China.
It's all very well saying, 'tough, that's the system' but how many British players would fancy flying to China to try and qualify for the UK Championship?
However, the other side of this is that whoever comes through to eventually face Liang could reasonably claim they should receive a walkover. They may even have a legal case (although it's unlikely to come to that).
If a British player had, say, broken down on the way to Prestatyn would they have been able to go to Shanghai and play the match? Unlikely.
Of course, having Liang playing in Shanghai can be defended on commercial grounds. Having him there is good for box office and TV.
But as this is the case, why was his match scheduled for Prestatyn in the first place?
So on the one hand this decision is common sense, on the other it's an unlevelling of the playing field.
As I said earlier, hmmm...
More...
Liang Wenbo's match in the final qualifying round of the Shanghai Masters, which was due to be played in Prestatyn on Thursday, will now be held at the venue in China.
Liang has been unable to get his work permit.
I have sympathy for the Chinese players - Mei Xiwen and Li Hang also failed to get visas. It seems ridiculous really that Chinese professionals have to travel to the UK to try and qualify for a tournament in China.
It's all very well saying, 'tough, that's the system' but how many British players would fancy flying to China to try and qualify for the UK Championship?
However, the other side of this is that whoever comes through to eventually face Liang could reasonably claim they should receive a walkover. They may even have a legal case (although it's unlikely to come to that).
If a British player had, say, broken down on the way to Prestatyn would they have been able to go to Shanghai and play the match? Unlikely.
Of course, having Liang playing in Shanghai can be defended on commercial grounds. Having him there is good for box office and TV.
But as this is the case, why was his match scheduled for Prestatyn in the first place?
So on the one hand this decision is common sense, on the other it's an unlevelling of the playing field.
As I said earlier, hmmm...
More...
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