Kevin Doets caused a shock early in this World Cup by sending home runner-up Michael Smith. The Dutchman from Sweden will face Krzysztof Ratajski in the third round after the Christmas break.
Doets already came close to beating Smith in his World Cup debut last year, so he did it this year. “I had the adrenaline I felt at the end of the match before, but then I didn’t win. Now that adrenaline could finally be for good,” Doets said.
“It gives me confidence that I can really beat such great players on the podium. I’ve already beaten almost the entire top group once, but never on stage. During the World Series of Darts finals in September (against Rob Cross, ed.), I missed four darts and something went wrong again. At some point you start to think: will this ever happen again? After the victory over Smith, all those emotions just subsided and you are very happy throughout the tournament.”
Kevin Doets in action
Attention
Doets was overwhelmed by the amount of messages he received after Smith’s shock. “The interest I got after this match is truly amazing. I couldn’t even reply to all the messages. There were some really nice ones there. For example, from a former colleague I haven’t spoken to in eight years. years, since my first job. It was at New York Pizza in Almere.
The 26-year-old Dutchman took advantage of the Christmas break in the World Darts Championships to return to Sweden for some time. He lives there with his friends and their son. “Now he will really discover his first Christmas, so instead of staying another seven or eight days in London, I returned to Stockholm. I have to experience it”
“On Monday evening there was Bingolotto. Then you played bingo all night through the TV,” he says. “I think this bingo happens about every week, but on Christmas and New Year’s Eve with special prizes. You can then win a million Swedish krona, for example around 100,000 euros.”
€100,000 is exactly what a semi-finalist receives at the World Darts Championships. “Then I just have to survive three more rounds in the World Championships…”
