Sensational Chang Bingyu produces more snooker perfection at Shenzhen Open qualifiers

The Chinese ace whitewashed Chatchapong Nasa, 5-0, in rapid time and dominant fashion on Tuesday at the Mattioli Arena in Leicester to reach the round of 64 in the £850,000 ranking event.

Last season’s Scottish Open runner-up began the contest in style with a 109 before doubling his lead courtesy of a 134 in frame two. The 23-year-old then continued to charge towards the finish line with an effort of 83 in the third.

But the biggest talking point arrived in the fourth frame when Chang slotted home 15 reds with blacks and all the colours to complete a maximum 147 break.

Following the mid-session interval, Chang wasted little time to confirm his passage through, registering a run of 135 - his fourth century of the encounter - for a clean sweep success.

Chang’s feat of snooker perfection is already the third 147 break of the fledgling 2026/27 professional season. Michael Holt made one at the China Open qualifiers and Si Jiahui did likewise at the Championship League.

In pole position for what is understood to be the £5,000 highest break prize on offer at the new Shenzhen Open, Chang’s maximum is the third that he has produced in professional competition - and all of them have come within the past eight months.

This remarkable sequence began at last year’s UK Championship qualifiers in Wigan when Chang constructed his maiden max against Stephen Maguire in the penultimate round.

Later in the term, Chang struck the same chord during his penultimate round World Championship qualifying tie with Luca Brecel. That particular feat turned out to be very lucrative for Chang, as he unlocked a £147,000 bonus for having crafted multiple 147s across that season’s four biggest tournaments.

On both occasions, however, Chang went on to lose the match, although he was on the winning side on this occasion.

Not only is it not the first time that he has made a maximum on the top-flight, but it’s another headline performance with a barrage of substantial breaks.

At the Welsh Open earlier this year against Shaun Murphy, Chang conjured up one of the most extraordinary televised displays in professional snooker history, as he won 4-0 with four century breaks and a 100% pot success rate. He outscored the Career Triple Crown winner 524-1 in total points, and received a standing ovation from his opponent and the audience at the Venue Cymru in Llandudno.

It was only last season that Chang returned to snooker’s premiership following a ban due to his role in the Chinese match-fixing scandal that rocked the sport during the 2022/23 campaign.

Winner of the 2025 Asia-Pacific Open Championship - his avenue back to the top tier - Chang has already climbed to 47th in the world rankings, and he has no prize money to defend throughout the whole of this season.

He nearly claimed his maiden professional title last December when he went on a brilliant run eliminating Stephen Maguire, Si Jiahui, Kyren Wilson, Mark Selby, and Mark Allen at the main venue to reach the final of the Scottish Open in Edinburgh, although his trophy tilt was stopped by champion Chris Wakelin the final.

Chang has already made a big statement of intent for this season, which is only weeks old. He has won 10 out of his 11 matches, totted up 11 tons, and qualified for both the upcoming China Open and Wuhan Open tournaments in August.

He is one more win away from another guaranteed trip back to his homeland for the Shenzhen Open, although he has to get past world number 20 Elliot Slessor on Wednesday afternoon in Leicester.

A total of 244 maximum 147 breaks have now been scored in professional snooker history. The record for the most maximums in a single term was obliterated last season (2025/26) when 24 were racked up; the previous benchmark was 15 from the season before (2024/25).