Martin Gould defeats under-par Ronnie O'Sullivan for first time in 2022 English Open third round

Updated 15/12/2022 at 15:06 GMT

Martin Gould got his first win against Ronnie O'Sullivan after playing him for the seventh time. The pair met first 11 years ago but this time it was Gould who took the victory. O'Sullivan was not at his best and Gould's attacking display earned him a convincing 4-1 victory, with O'Sullivan never ahead at any point in the match. Gould will play the winner of Pang Junxu and Ashley Hugill.

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Martin Gould secured an impressive 4-1 win over Ronnie O'Sullivan in the third round of the English Open on Thursday afternoon.

O’Sullivan had reached the third round of the tournament after an entertaining second-round win against Dechawat Poomjaeng, in a match-up that featured flukes and bizarre shot selection that drew the approval of the world No.1.

He was up against Gould in the third round, with the 41-year-old still in the competition after beating a battling Gary Wilson. And speaking to Eurosport after his victory, Gould said it was even more satisfying as he has struggled with injury of late.

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"I enjoyed it," he said. "I felt a lot more comfortable than I did when I played him before. It’s all about getting a good start which I managed to do. He missed a couple you don’t normally expect Ronnie to miss. I was pleased to clear up, and that did settle me down.

"I’ve been enjoying it, I’ve had to manage a couple of things away from the game. I’ve injured my knee, I have to have injections in it. Sometimes I can’t even walk. I am limited to a couple of hours of practice, but it’s not been great, but it’s my own fault for falling over. I wasn’t drunk either! I don’t drink, I haven’t touched a drop in about 18 months, it’s just old age."

O’Sullivan has yet to win a ranking tournament this season but has victories in both the Champion of Champions tournament and the Hong Kong Masters, and also reached the quarter-finals of the UK Championship.

O’Sullivan was a heavy favourite going into the clash, but despite a half-century break in the first frame, Gould took the lead with the score at 70-67.

Gould then hit a half-century of his own with a break of 60 taking him two clear of his opponent.

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A fluent 78 from O’Sullivan then reduced the deficit to a single frame, before he lost the fourth frame when he blasted the cue ball against the blue and off the table after finding himself in a frustrating position.

Gould then coasted to victory as he left a disjointed O'Sullivan requiring two snookers when he went 65-7 clear, and preceded to return to the table to secure the win, the first of his career against O'Sullivan.

Gould will play the winner of Pang Junxu and Ashley Hugill later on Thursday evening.

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