Ryan Day is eager to make a statement as he defends the maiden ranking event win of his career in this week’s Kaspersky Riga Masters.

The Welsh potter gained the first ranking tournament win of his 19-year career last summer in the Latvian capital, overcoming Stephen Maguire in the final. It proved to be a launchpad for a fine season as there were further tournament wins at the Gibraltar Open and Romanian Masters, following an early season speed bump when he required a new cue.

Day is back in Riga and keen to start the new season on another high note. “To start the season with a win in Riga probably did wonders for my confidence going forward. I then had an issue from September for a couple of months after my cue was broken,” he told World Snooker. “Once that was sorted and I’d settled on a new one, I managed to win two tournaments back-to-back in Gibraltar and Romania. That was unthinkable really and was an amazing feeling.” Day says he takes great inspiration from seeing 40-somethings Mark Williams, John Higgins and Ronnie O’Sullivan still at the top of the snooker pyramid. His fellow Welshman Williams overcame Higgins in a memorable World Championship final at the Crucible in May.

Day is aiming to make his mark this season at snooker’s marquee events. “Any tournament you enter is tough to win, but that is the goal. I suppose the Welsh Open is another one which is always a target for me, but it has been a bit of a barren hunting ground over the years,” he added. “I want to up it this year and really push for the latter stages of that and the Triple Crown events.”

Day is 26.00 to retain his title in Riga, with world champion Williams the tournament favourite at 6.00 for opening ranking event of the new season.