Joe Cullen has placed himself with his heels over the ditch for the third round of the World Darts Championship. The Englishman, who was almost the tormentor of Michael van Gerwen last year, fought back from a deficit and may take on Martijn Kleermaker in the third round.
This afternoon, four English players came into action, three of which are outsiders with a bit of imagination. First up was Ryan Searle. ‘Heavy metal’ recently made it to the final of the Players Championship Finals, losing 10-11 to Peter Wright. He took on Scottish sensation William Borland, the 25-year-old who hit a nine-darter in the very last leg against Bradley Brooks. It never got exciting, however: Searle coolly settled the Scot in 3-0. Searle may face Danny Noppert in the third round, if the Frisian manages to beat Jason Heaver.
After that, all eyes were on Glen Durrant, the man who reached the quarterfinals two years ago and lost to Gerwyn Price. However, the former Premier League winner has not been the same since his corona infection and therefore started his match against William O’Connor as an underdog. The Irishman immediately dealt a sensitive blow in the first leg by throwing out 170, while Durrant was waiting for a double. Although Durrant showed fragments of his old level again, he was also ready after three sets.
There was also no tension in the match between Luke Humphries and Rowby-John Rodriguez, which also ended in a boring 3-0. That’s why we had to wait for Joe Cullen against Jim Williams to give the afternoon session a little shine. The start was good: Jim Williams won the first three legs and left Cullen in the first set. In the second set, Cullen started with a 130 finish and did the same thing Williams did in the first: winning three legs in a row. In the third set, Cullen gave up his lead again and Williams took the lead. A set later Williams again didn’t stand a chance and the well-scoring Cullen was successful again. A decisive fifth set had to be played.
Cullen was allowed to start on that set and immediately ran out quickly. As Williams’ average continued to drop, Cullen continued to throw maximum scores. The thirteenth seed Cullen eventually escaped unscathed and secured a spot in the third round with his heels over the ditch. In it, he may compete against Martijn Kleermaker, if the Dutchman manages to beat Simon Whitlock tonight. Dirk van Duijvenbode is also entering tonight Ally Pally.
Results afternoon session
Second round (best of five sets)
• Ryan Searle (Eng, 15) – William Borland (Sco) 3-0
• Glen Durrant (Eng, 24) – William O’Connor (Irish) 0-3
• Luke Humphries (Eng, 19) – Rowby-John Rodriguez (East) 3-0
• Joe Cullen (Eng, 13) – Jim Williams (Wal) 3-2
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