EIn fact, Max Hope and Gabriel Clemens should not have played their first round game in the World Cup darts against Canadians Jeff Smith and Matt Campbell. Because there was an amazing deal that the German doubles would lose. Ahead of the tournament, Dan Dawson, one of the most famous commentators on international darts, wrote: “I think Germany will be out against Canada.”

He received prominent support from Wayne Mard, a former Sky professional and longtime British TV expert. While this made the eight-seeded pair a secret favorite last year, this time around, Hope and Clemens only need to play one outsider against Canada. Of course: this assessment is not entirely unfounded.

German beginners have not been in great form lately. Gabriel Clemens was found to be the best player in the world so far in his 2:10 opening defeat against Jose de Souza at the World Matchplay in July. Max Hope lags behind the wealth of his previous years, speaking in his “bad years” Welt interview.

Lots of breaks in the beginning

On the other hand, after all the quarter-finalists in Salzburg last year, dangerous Canadians were waiting, and according to the latest results, they should shine with confidence. Matt Campbell recently played in a big way, not only securing a tour ticket with the overall success of the European Challenge Tour for the next two years, but also one of the starting points for the individual world championship in Alli Pali.

“As a seeded player, there are three or four countries you don’t want in the first round. Poland, Austria, Canada ”, Gabriel Clemens had to admit in a post-match winner interview. In the winner interview? In fact, the experts were wrong, Germany won 5: 3.

The two Germans, who were ready with Clemens in Saarland, overtook the doubles in the first match alone and threw eight darts and slowly made their way into the game. However, Canada and the particularly acclaimed Matt Campbell never got into the rhythm, a game developed at an early stage, which, contrary to the law, had no real advantage for the throwing team. Clemens’ first highlight led to 2: 2 and the fourth in a row. World No. 24, for whom the first World Cup, in front of an audience, scored 122 points with three darts.

Hope uses the first match dart

As a result, Clemens was able to significantly improve his game and further delight the already very loud 900 spectators in Jena. His partner Hope also saw it after the game. The 25-year-old pointed to Clemens on stage before inviting the audience to La-Ola with his 13-year-old colleague.

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“We are happy that we are on the next lap. Fortunately, Gabriel kept us alive. I showed some nerves, ”Hope said after the game, adding that he was still looking for his best form. However, at crucial moments, the match ended in favor of last year’s semi – finalists thanks to the leading talents. Not only did he try to make it 4: 3, but he also completed the German team’s first match victory.

“Of course I was not 100 percent confident,” Hope said, adding that he also benefited from the fact that secret favorites from Canada never showed their best darts. So Hopp was able to throw the first dart a long way to the remaining goal with 48 points to win the fifth leg with the remaining two arrows. After the game, Hope laughed about it and said: “I’m not ashamed of it. I haven’t had an audience in a long time. It’s a difficult time, but I face all the challenges.”

Northern Ireland Darts Survive Crime Thriller

The next is waiting for the 16th round, which will be played in full on Saturday, in which the first two singles will be played, before a double decision is made on a draw. For hops, an increase in performance is required. The Germans are clearly the favorite against June Matsuda and Baba Yoshihisa from Japan. Debutants won one match against Russia at an average of 5: 1. On the way to the quarterfinals, the Japanese must have only a compulsory job, but Clemens warned: “We must take the whole thing seriously and be well prepared.”

Northern Irish Daryl Gurney and Brendan Dolan survived a real dart thriller. Against Hong Kong, the fifth-seeded pair suffered a 3: 4 break in the seventh leg, and shortly afterwards, Kai Fan Leung and Mann Lok Leung even won five match darts. However, similar to Hope, the team from Asia struggled with their nerves. Gurney was able to check out Double-2 before his partner Dolan turned the match into Doubles-20 in favor of the beloved.

First round

Hungary – Lithuania 3: 5

Czech Republic 2-5 Poland

Gibraltar – Singapore 4: 5

USA – Sweden 5-1

Scotland (6) – China 5-0

Netherlands (3) – Denmark 5-1

Wales (2) – Finland 5-2

Australia (7) – Italy 5-0

Russia 1-5 Japan

Spain 4-5 South Africa

Ireland 4-5 Portugal

Austria – Philippines 5: 1

Northern Ireland (5) – Hong Kong 5: 4

Germany (8) – Canada 5: 3

England (1) – Brazil 5: 2

Belgium (4) – Greece 5-2

Second round

Northern Ireland (5) – Portugal

England (1) – South Africa

Australia (7) – USA

Belgium (4) – Austria

Scotland (6) – Poland

Germany (8) – Japan

Netherlands (3) – Singapore

Wales (2) – Litauen