Stephen Lee was at the centre of a storm in 2013. The English professional snooker player was handed a 12-year ban – backdated to 2012 – after being found guilty of seven match-fixing charges by the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA), the sport’s governing body.

At the time, this was the harshest punishment imposed in the sport, until the lifetime bans given to Liang Wenbo and Li Hang in 2023 (for match-fixing and other charges). Lee, who was 38 when he took this massive blow, was also ordered to pay £40,000 in costs, which eventually went up to more than £100,000.

It was a sad end to a professional career which had reached impressive heights. An impulsive potter who could make the white ball dance to his tune, thanks to an aesthetic ‘Rolls Royce’ cue action, Le

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