World Darts Championship: Gary Anderson ready to show experience pays off – ‘I’m on average higher than everyone else’ | News about darts

Many darts fans will head to Ally Pally focused on the talented youngsters coming through the ranks, but Gary Anderson wants to show he’s still a better player than them.

Two-time world champion Anderson has been in impressive form in recent years after rediscovering his love of darts, reaching the Grand Slam semi-finals where he lost to Luke Littler in an all-time classic.

Now the 53-year-old will turn his attention to a stage where he has enjoyed so much success – Alexandra Palace – as he prepares to face either Jeffrey de Graaf or Rashad Sweeting in the second round.

While the ‘Flying Scotsman’ is a household name for darts fans, attention has recently turned to the likes of Littler, Gian van Veen and Mike De Decker who are rising through the ranks and causing a stir.

Anderson, however, is quietly confident that, in the biggest tournament of all, experience will always pay off. Plus, an average above the rising stars helps too!

“Yeah, it’s getting better. But at the same stage, what I’m trying to tell people is the old guys are still playing well,” Anderson said.

“I still average probably higher than everyone else combined. So yes, they have youth on their side, which for us boys is a bit of an understatement because we want to be young again, but they have a big future ahead of them.

“Darts are going to be really good in the next four to five, six years.”

While Anderson is happy to see so many young players having so much success, he worries that the sport is their only winner.

Indeed, it would push for them to have a “safety net” to fall back on due to the unpredictable nature of arrows.

“It’s great for young people, they come straight from school, they earn so much money, fantastic, absolutely fantastic. But if something goes wrong, they never have to trade,” he said.

“If something happened, they couldn’t throw darts, they’ve got arthritis, they can’t play darts again, what are they going to do? They’ve left school, they’ve been doing darts for four or five years, they’re stuck now, there’s not much out there.

“I’ve always said, take a trade, have something behind you to fall back on. It’s there for a safety net.”

‘I didn’t do too badly’: Ato recalls world glory

Anderson is among an elite group of players who have made it to back-to-back Worlds, with Phil Taylor and Adrian Lewis joining him in that feat.

Of his two wins, beating the all-time great at Taylor is his highlight, but he admits he turned up in 2017 wanting the hat-trick and was disappointed to lose in the final to Michael van Gerwen.

“Well, he’s won it twice, you know, but I’ve been to five finals,” Anderson said.

“Out of the two, he would have to play Phil. You know Phil, the legend he is and how many times he’s won championships on this stage.

“You’ve got youngsters there now who will never get the chance to play Phil Taylor.

“So even if Phil had beaten me, it wouldn’t have bothered me. I was playing Phil Taylor in the final.”

“I think when you win it, the pressure is off,” added the Scot.

“No matter what happens next, your name will always be on this trophy.

“When I won it the second time, the third time, I went for the hat-trick.

“There’s been guys who’ve won it back to back. I don’t think they’ve done it three times in a row. But I’ve been to the finals – so I’ve been to five finals, I’ve beaten him twice, so I didn’t do too bad there.”

expectations? Absolutely none!

Some players will enter the World Championships with specific goals in mind, but for Anderson, just “playing well” is the only goal, with the hope that results will follow.

“You want to play well in every tournament. Absolutely,” he said.

“But we’re getting to the end of it. You know, the World Championship at the end of the year, so we just got to the end of the Pro Tour, the end of the European, the Grand Slam, the Players Championship. , for the Worlds, so that will give time to boys get ready for the big one.

“I can play well one day and terrible the next.

“So I don’t expect anything now. I have no expectations. I just want to go out there and play well.

“It’s probably the first big stage, especially for newcomers. And the first time they’re up there, that’s one of the biggest stages that any darts player will play. Well, it’s the biggest stage.

“Just the length of the stage and the crowd behind it. So, the first time, it’s a bit overwhelming and a different atmosphere.”

When will the World Darts Championship take place?

The tournament kicks off at Alexandra Palace on Sunday 15 December, with three first round matches and one second round match on the opening night.

There will be live darts for each of the next eight days, including seven afternoon sessions, with the usual three-day break from Christmas Eve to Boxing Day before returning with round three and a double session on December 27.

The third and fourth rounds will be completed by 30 December before an evening off on New Year’s Eve, with the quarter-finals played over two sessions on New Year’s Day before the semi-finals on 2 January and the final on Friday 3 January.

You can find the full daily schedule for this year’s tournament here.

Who Will Win The Paddy Power World Darts Championship? Watch every match exclusively live from 15 December to 3 January on Sky Sports’ exclusive darts channel. Stream darts and more top sports with NOW.