Chinese teams maintain perfect start to World Cup

The China A team maintained their unbeaten record at the 2017 Little Swan Snooker World Cup with a 4-1 defeat of Egypt in their third group match in Wuxi, Jiangsu province on July 5.

The team, made up by world number four Ding Junhui and world number twelve Liang Wenbo, have now won 12 of 15 frames in their matches so far, and sit top of Group B alongside Belgium, who defeated Germany with a 4-1 victory.

Defending champions Yan Bingtao and Zhou Yuelong, competing here as China B, also kept up their strong start to the tournament with a 4-1 defeat of Brazil.

Liang Wenbo of China B team competes in the match against Brazil in the 2017 Snooker World Cup in Wuxi, China, on July 5. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Yan and Zhou will face by far their biggest test of the tournament on Thursday, when they face the current frontrunners in Group A, Wales.

The Welsh team of Ryan Day and two-time world champion Mark Williams have looked formidable so far at the World Cup. They swept Finland 5-0 in their third match of the tournament to maintain their winning run, with both players scoring heavily.

Williams made a break of 109 in the opening frame, while Riga Masters winner Day made the highest break of the tournament so far in the fourth, clearing the table for a 140 break.