On his PDC World Darts Championships debut, James Hurrell performed very successfully on Tuesday afternoon. Although a handful of missed darts in the final stage caused his average to drop below 90, Hurrell still had more than enough in the tank to finish off his opponent comfortably. Jim Long 3-0.
Expected to be a close match, it turned out that Hurrell wasted no time in sealing the clash Michael van Gerwen. If Hurrell continues this and MvG isn’t as rosy as it was this year, it could be a tough draw for the three-time world champion.
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“The whole thing about that match was that I was playing against Michael van Gerwen on Friday,” Hurrell reflected in his post-match press conferenceadmitting that the lure of a blockbuster draw in the second round played on his mind. “That was my goal. I wanted to play with him. So yeah, just be solid and get ready for him now.”
There is no fear of the Mighty Dutchman either. “Everyone is beatable,” he says with conviction. “I just have to be solid and come out like I did back then. I can’t wait to play with Michael.”
Even though it was his first appearance in… Pally’s allyHurrell has World Championship experience having previously competed at Lakeside. “It was amazing. I felt more comfortable there than in Lakeside” – he compares two iconic darting places. “Lakeside was just… there was something about this place that I thought, no. But this (ed. Alexandra Palace) is amazing.”
Hurrell is a first-time PDC Tour Card holder and has performed solidly throughout 2024. Before the start of the PDC Darts World Championships, the Englishman was in 89th place in the Order of Merit rankings, but it looks like he will now be able to move up. However, everything did not always go so well for the “Village Man”, as a serious illness almost put an end to more than just his crazy ambitions.
“I just want to thank the surgeon who operated on me. Honestly, I didn’t think I would be here, I was so close to death. So all the hard work pays off,” he concludes. “I had a twisted intestine and yeah, I really don’t want to go through that to be honest.”
