Patrick Einsle will lead the German contingent during qualifying for the Paul Hunter Classic on Wednesday.

The prestigious ranking event is once again taking place in the German city of Furth and a number of players from the host country will be bidding to make it through to the main draw.

Former world number 80 Einsle is perhaps the best known of the contingent, as he has previously been a regular on the professional tour, but he has not made it through to the main draw of a ranking event since the 2013 UK Championship.

The 31-year-old will take on compatriot Michael Heeger in the first qualifying round on Wednesday and, in total, 24 German players will compete at this stage of the tournament.

There are also some high-profile players from outside Europe set to compete in the first qualifying round, including three-time ladies world champion Ng On Yee of Hong Kong.

Ng On Yee won the most recent of her world titles this year and she will now bid to make it through to the main draw of the Paul Hunter Classic for the first time, but first she must overcome England’s Paul Thompson in her opening qualifying match.

Another player from Hong Kong, Cheung Ka Wai, is also in qualifying action on Wednesday when he takes on Umar Ali Shaikh of Pakistan. The 19-year-old is highly thought of following his victory in the IBSF World Under-18 Snooker Championship back in 2015, but has yet to make inroads in the professional game.