David Gilbert
Name: David Gilbert
DOB: June 12th, 1981
Nationality: English
Turned Pro: 2001
Highest Ranking: #43 (2008/9)
Current Ranking: #51
Highest Break: 135 (2006 World Championship)
Career Highlights: 2009 Welsh Open last 16, Qualified for the 2007 World Championship, 2007 Welsh Open and 2008 Royal London Watches Grand Prix
Career summary
A former World Snooker Young Player of Distinction, probably the first time that anyone saw David on TV was during an exhibition at the Crucible with Steve Davis and John Parrott at the start of the decade. Back then as a youngster he showed that he could pot balls with the best of them and appeared to have a great future ahead of him, but somehow things just haven’t quite gone to plan.
Making his debut on the tour in 2002/3, his best performance was a run to the last 48 of the Regal Scottish Open which meant that he just about retain his place for another season. It took a long while for him really to establish himself though and it was not until 2007/8 that he moved into the top 48 for the first time.
Crucible disappointment
Key to his rise up the rankings were two last 32 appearances in 2007, first at the Welsh Open where he lost out to Steve Davis, before he defeated Alfie Burden, Gerard Greene and Mark King to qualify for the final stages of the World Championship for the first time.
At the Crucible he came up against childhood hero Stephen Hendry who at the time was struggling to find his best form having changed his week just weeks before the tournament began. Gilbert found himself in dreamland early on as he raced into a 5-1 lead, but Hendry showed all his fighting qualities to hang in there and get out of the first session just 5-4 behind.
Although David was still ahead, there was very much a feeling that he had missed his chance and so it proved as he slipped to a 10-7 defeat the next day. Dave was naturally disappointed to lose in this manner as he knew he had a great chance to defeat Hendry at the Crucible, but unfortunately for him he just could not quite take it.
What was probably more disappointing for David though is that having made such a good run at the end of the season, he could not carry this on into the next season and failed to make much of an impression in 2007/8, though his ranking did move up a couple of places to 43rd.
2008/9
At the 2008 Grand Prix he found himself in the last 32 of a ranking event for the third time and was again paired with a struggling Stephen Hendry who up to that point had failed to win a match in the 2008/9 season. Despite having a number of chances to win the match though it was to be more disappointment for David as Hendry again prevailed, this time 5-4 on the final pink as Dave tried in vain to get a snooker.
Dave said after this match that not only was he disappointed to lose, but he was also critical of his game at the moment, describing his safety play as “non-existent” and saying that he was probably a better player a few years ago.
A breakthrough was to come however at the Welsh Open where having won his first match to reach the last 48, once there he drew local favourite Mark Williams and had his match held over to the TV stages at Newport as a result. Few people really gave David a chance in this match but he was to perform brilliantly, a pot success rate of over 95% and an equally strong showing in the safety department taking him to a 5-1 win. His run was not to end there however as he came through againstan in-form Joe Perry in the next round to reach the last 16 of an event for the first time. Though he could not stop defending champion Mark Selby once there, he had finally shown some of the talent that he clearly possesses on the big stage and had importantly given himself a chance of retaining his top 48 spot at the end of the season.
Another man in form in Wales however was Martin Gould, and it was unfortunate for David that he was to draw him in the last 64 of the World Championship later that month. It was a high quality match but as Gould came out on top, the loss meant that David could finish no higher than 51st in the rankings and so from next season will have an additional hurdle to overcome if he is to qualify for events.
