Gould raring to go in China and eyeing top-16 return

Martin Gould hopes a dentist-free spell will help him return to the world’s top 16 and get him back on track to qualify for the Masters in 2017.

The Pinner Potter was unable to play for six weeks because of having treatment on his wisdom teeth and he lost his ranking of 15 in the world in the early stages of the season.

But Gould, who turned 35 on Wednesday, is back playing again and hoping to climb up from 17 and earn a place in the prestigious invitational Masters event at Alexandra Palace next year.

His immediate target is the Shanghai Masters in China next week.

Gould plays Yuan Sijun in the wildcard round on Monday evening – with a match against Mark Selby awaiting the winner.

Londoner Gould told West London Sport: “With all the travelling and few too many trips to the dentist I have not practised as much as I would have liked. And the schedule is so hectic too that you have to try to balance all the travelling and playing with a bit of rest.

“I seem to have been flying here, there and everywhere. But I have been playing okay and felt I was getting back into good form when I played in the Six Reds last week.”

Gould lost 5-0 to Chinese teenager Yuan in the first round of the China Open last season, but is glad to get the chance to put things right next week.

“I look forward to every match,” he added.

“The lad will be chomping at the bit to play me again and will fancy his chances having beaten me 5-0 but hopefully he will come unstuck this time.”