Is China Killing Snooker?

First, China was the bright future of snooker. The driving force behind the development of the game as Chinese sponsors plugged the gaping hole left after the banning of tobacco company sponsorship on the world tour. Now, it's being blamed for its eventual downfall, according to the world's number six player, Mark Allen, at least. And he apportions some of the blame at the feet of World Snooker chairman, and sports impresario, Barry Hearn.

Allen, who the BBC claims has earned over 270 thousand quid in the last two years, says the demands on players to participate in Chinese tournaments are taking a massive toll on their finances. A toll he says could see a drastically reduced field actually turning up to play in China's five ranking tournaments next season.

"When we started going to China we used to get our flights paid for but when Barry came in he stopped that, so that's probably another £10,000-£15,000 a year we have to pay out," said the Northern Irishman.

The 27-year-old has been an outspoken critic of Hearn's stewardship of the sport, and has had several run-ins with the chairman.

Hearn has overseen a huge leap in the amount of prize money on offer to the top players since he took over in 2010, and recently announced that next season will be the most lucrative ever.

Allen, who made the headlines last year after blasting the conditions at the World Open in Hainan, believes the soaring expense of playing in China will eventually lead players to quit the tour.

The final event of the season, the 2013 World Championship, gets underway in Sheffield on April 20, and sees the return of Chinese fan favorite Ronnie O'Sullivan. China's top player, Ding Junhui, will be hoping to improve on his first round exit at last year's tournament.