World Snooker Championship star hits 'biggest fluke' ever as commentators can't believe it

A resurgent Zhao Xintong has already potted what may go down as the biggest fluke of the The accidental bit of magic occurred during the opening frame of his first-round showdown against Jak Jones on Sunday.

stud Zhao is featuring at the Crucible for the first time since 2022 after he served a 20-month suspension as part of a . And the Chinese star's luck appeared to be in after bouncing the blue off four cushions to pocket a shot he'd likely struggle to replicate if he tried. The 28-year-old led 39-0 in Sunday's opening frame against Jones when he lined the blue up for the top-left corner from range, only to clip both edges of the pocket and send it towards the middle-right. He had hoped it would nestle there, only to ricochet off that pocket as well and rebound back up the table, off the middle cushion and crawl towards the middle-left.

"Well, he nearly fluked it, but that tells you his intent," said commentator Dave Hendon before checking himself as the ball crept towards its final destination. "Oh, hang on. Maybe he has fluked it.

"Aw, that's incredible. That's incredible! Well, I'll tell you what, the snooker gods [are] already looking fondly on him."

And colleague Dominic Dale - who recently announced his retirement from playing to step up his commentary duties - was similarly impressed. The Welsh whiz dubbed the triple-banked shot "unbelievable" before describing its rarity in further detail.

"I've played this game for so long," he continued. "And every now and again, you see a fluke you've never seen before. And there was one."

The plaudits didn't stop with those in attendance at the Crucible, where Zhao and Jones resumed their match on Monday. And it should come as no surprise that those watching from home were equally impressed with the fortune they'd just witnessed.

"The geometry in this is beautiful," wrote one spectator on X, lapping up the ball's flight path as it found its home on accident. Another called Zhao "pinball wizard" for the effort, even if it wasn't on purpose.

"Fortune favours the brave," chimed in another impressed viewer. And that was in addition to the legions of supporters overawed with Zhao's general quality around the table, flukes aside.