Ken Doherty believes snooker must be taught from the match-fixing scandal that has engulfed the game in current months.

Doherty, the 1997 world champion, is the chairman of the Gamers committee that’s linked to the World Skilled Billiards and Snooker Affiliation.

On Tuesday, the WPBSA introduced that every one ten gamers who had been charged within the corruption case earlier in 2023 had been handed prolonged bans from the game.

Liang Wenbo and Li Hold have been given the hardest punishments, lifetime sentences that successfully finish their snooker careers.

The opposite eight perpetrators have additionally obtained multi-year suspensions, together with former UK champion Zhao Xintong, former Masters winner Yan Bingtao, and long-time professional Lu Ning.

The fees ranged from match-fixing to betting on snooker matches, however additionally they included realizing obstruction of the investigation and coersion.

Ken Doherty mentioned: “That is an especially unlucky place these gamers and the sport of snooker finds itself in.”

“However we should be taught classes from this and take optimistic motion to reply to a consistently altering world by frequently reviewing our procedures and serving to to make sure that gamers keep away from making the identical errors sooner or later.”

A assertion from the WPBSA Gamers was launched within the instant aftermath of the listening to’s outcomes.

“The WPBSA Gamers Board of Administrators is extraordinarily saddened by the actions of all of these involved who’ve been discovered responsible of such severe breaches of the WPBSA guidelines,” it mentioned.

“WPBSA Gamers has supplied sensible assist to the gamers all through the case to make sure that all of them had a transparent understanding of the method and obtained a good listening to in entrance of the impartial tribunal.”

“Every of the gamers will now face a interval of reflection and wish to come back to phrases with the affect their actions have had on their very own careers, their fellow gamers, and the credibility of sport typically.

“WPBSA Gamers will proceed to speak with the gamers impacted from a welfare perspective and in keeping with the phrases of the tribunal resolution, facilitate them to help the WPBSA in its anti-corruption and participant schooling efforts.

“WPBSA Gamers want to acknowledge the work of the WPBSA and its companions in bringing the case to a conclusion and in search of to guard the integrity of snooker within the pursuits of all its members who proceed to play by the principles with ardour and dedication to the sport of snooker.”

Liang Wenbo has been given a lifetime ban from snooker and is to pay £43,000 in prices.

Li Hold has been given a lifetime ban from snooker and is to pay £43,000 in prices.

Lu Ning has been given an 8 yr suspension, diminished following early admissions and his plea of responsible, to five years and 4 months till 6 April 2028. He’s to pay £7,500 in prices.

Yan Bingtao has been given a 7 yr and 6 months suspension, diminished following early admissions and plea of responsible, to five years till 11 December 2027. He’s to pay £7,500 in prices.

Zhao Xintong has been given a 2 yr and 6 months suspension, diminished following early admissions and his plea of responsible, to 1 yr and eight months till 1 September 2024. He’s to pay £7,500 in prices.

Zhao Jianbo has been given a 3 yr and 6 months suspension, diminished following early admissions and his plea of responsible, to 2 years and 4 months till 7 April 2025. He’s to pay £7,500 in prices.

Chang Bingyu has been given a 3 yr suspension, diminished following early admissions and his plea of responsible, to 2 years till 7 December 2024. He’s to pay £7,500 in prices.

Bai Langning has been given a 4 yr suspension, diminished following early admissions and his plea of responsible, to 2 years and eight months till 6 August 2025. He’s to pay £7,500 in prices.

Chen Zifan has been given a 7 yr and 6 months suspension, diminished following early admissions and his plea of responsible, to five years till 20 December 2027. He’s to pay £7,500 in prices.

Zhang Jiankang has been given a 4 yr and 5 months suspension, diminished following early admissions and his plea of responsible, to 2 years and 11 months till 1 December 2025. He’s to pay £7,500 in prices.

In the meantime, another important tour gamers have reacted to the report, which outlined numerous the precise matches that had been concerned within the fixing ring.

Robert Milkins and Aaron Hill had been two opponents caught up within the saga by way of no fault of their very own.

Their respective encounters towards Lu Ning and Zhao Jianbo in qualifying matches throughout 2022 had been amongst these beneath investigation.

“It’s stunning,” Welsh Open champion Milkins mentioned, as reported by Hector Nunns for the Specific.

“Pondering again now, I performed rather well in that recreation and he couldn’t do something proper.”

“When you may have performed effectively, you typically don’t suppose a lot of how badly the opposite participant did since you give your self the credit score.

“So I didn’t have a sniff of it – not a clue. I didn’t give him a lot of an opportunity for it to even look suspicious, and I actually didn’t come off considering, ‘he’s chucked that’.”

Eire’s Hill was additionally “shocked” by the occasions that unfolded.

“I keep in mind placing myself beneath such stress to win. It was to qualify for Northern Eire and I actually needed to play in Belfast,” Hill mentioned.

“Now I realise the child wasn’t even attempting. The results are there and clear if any participant is silly sufficient to attempt it once more.

“I don’t suppose we’ll ever see any extra of it within the sport. You’d must be a lunatic. These gamers are disgraced for all times, themselves and their households, they are going to all the time be recognized for match-fixing.

“I’d reward the WPBSA and the integrity unit for the way they’ve handled it. They’ve finished a robust investigation and acquired the responsible verdicts we wanted.”

Featured photograph credit score: WST