Humility and hard work driving Chinese snooker star Bai Yulu

WATCH: Bai Yulu talks to CGTN Europe about her snooker career 

For a 20-year-old who made last year's World snooker Championship final and then crowned British champion two months later, it's incredible to hear Bai Yulu say she doesn't feel naturally gifted.

"When I first started training as a kid, I was more interested in just playing and not working hard," said the 20-year-old from Weinan, Shaanxi. "I have been training for 10 years. I think my current results are entirely dependent on just building it up over the long-term. But I feel like I don't have very good talents."

Off the baize and speaking to CGTN Europe ahead of the World Championships which start on Monday, Bai is softly-spoken, in good spirits and humble. With a cue in her hand, she's clearly a warrior and a rising star who has jumped to 11th in the world rankings and 3rd in the U21 rankings.

China will host snooker's biggest event for the first time next week in Dongguan. It's 12 months since she lost in the final in Bangkok to Siripaporn Nuanthakhamjam, although she still hit the headlines with a record-breaking 127 break - the highest in the tournament's history.

She'll be desperate to impress in front of her own fans. "I'm looking forward to it, because the last time I played, it was a pity," she added. "I'm hoping this time I can do better, so I'm really looking forward to it.

"I actually learned a lot when I played in Thailand in the final, because before I started I was quite confident in myself. Later on I realized that in this kind of tournament, it's not just about your skills, but also your overall ability, including your mentality and experience.

"I realized I had all these things. In fact, I realized that my experience in other aspects, and my mentality may not be so stable and good, but I still feel I have a lot of experience and that's just something I need to build on."

The Dongguan Snooker Academy is close to home, having moved to the city as a child because of her parents' work commitments. Bai was allowed to skip school to practise up to 10 hours a day, and was still able to study English, Chinese and maths at home. From the age of 11 to 15, she lost to men many times. Many would have turned away from the game.

She found training at an early age boring. But her work ethic paid off. She was World U21 champion aged 16. Her father at the time said: "We feel she has a lot of potential as a snooker player. Of course, the dream is to be the best in the world."

He had every reason to be optimistic. Bai said: "I got involved in snooker at the age of 10 and I got involved through the influence of my father, who was a big fan. My dad liked to play, so he put a small table in the house, and he'd play on it, and he'd let me play with it.

"I didn't know anything about it at the start and he'd give me some of the basics. One time he was just joking around, saying that he'd find a professional trainer for me. One day, I saw an advertisement for my current coach Li Jianbing, and thought I'd go and try it out." 

The rest is history and history is in the making.

The hard work, despite the admission of laziness in her early years, is reaping reward. She has already played in professional tournaments with men and victory at the World Championships would offer direct qualification to the World Snooker Tour and Q School guaranteeing a two-year professional tour card.

Playing with male pros is a huge step in the world of snooker. Like everything else Bai has tackled in life, she's unfazed and willing to graft in adapting.

"I've played in professional tournaments a few times and I feel that the mindset is completely different, so I'm still a little bit nervous so I do think about it a little bit more," she said.

"When you play against some of the best players in the world, you really get to experience that there's still a big gap between your ability and experience, so I hope to have more opportunities to learn."

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China is increasingly becoming the beating heart of snooker's global renaissance. The World Snooker Tour announced in February a new ranking Grand Prix in the city of Xi'an, starting from the 2024/25 season. It is the fifth confirmed event for China next season.

The pressure will build and comparisons with compatriot Ding Junhui are common for Bai. Ding is the most successful Asian player in the history of the sport. 

"Even if I get recognized, it's still very rare," Bai said, without any hint of disappointment. "If I am recognized, it's usually in places like Dongguan, where I train. Not too many people recognize me on the street unless they play snooker or are snooker fans. Ding Junhui is much more famous and people know him on the street. So there is a long way to go for me in that respect!"

Her family and country will be cheering Bai on next week when she takes on the world in Dongguan, but you sense she may just have to get used to being recognized a little bit more; and not just in China.

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