Interview with Elmar Paulke: About the most special Darts World Cup of all time

Monday 14 December 2020

Interview with Elmar Paulke
About the most special darts world championship of all time

Is an era ending at the Darts World Cup 2021? Michael van Gerwen, the undisputed number one in the darts world for seven years, threatens to lose his place in the sun. Peter Wright and Gerwyn Price have the chance at the world championships to push "MvG" from the top spot in the world rankings. This is not the only reason why an exciting tournament is expected at the "Ally Pally" in London. In an interview with ntv.de, Germany's best-known darts commentator Elmar Paulke, who will be attending the World Cup from December 15th to January 3rd on Dazn, looks at the World Cup starting on Tuesday evening. Who is the top favorite? What chances do the three German participants have? And is partial admission justified for spectators during the pandemic?

ntv.de: The Professional Darts Corporation only announced the details of the World Cup at short notice. For a long time it was not officially known whether the tournament would take place. How did the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) manage this Corona year?

Elmar Paulke: It was a Herculean task. And I have to say, the PDC did it damn well. Flexibility was the biggest challenge. The PDC often had to throw its plans overboard because one noticed: Shit, we still can't organize tournaments. With the home tour, however, they took advantage of an early opportunity that other sports didn't have. You can let the actors play darts at home and take part in tournaments.

Until recently it was said that 1000 spectators per session can enter the hall at the World Cup. Now the PDC decided against it with the British government. Fans are only allowed in the "Ally Pally" on the first evening.

It will be another World Cup. It won't be the World Cup for crazy fans, no Ballermann party.

When looking at the sporting events, it is noticeable that Michael van Gerwen has won few tournaments by his standards. What was the issue?

I have the impression that the competition knows that van Gerwen can be beaten. His opponents didn't always know that. That is why he has lost a bit of the aura of the invincible. It was exciting to see how van Gerwen deals with it. And I have to say, I admire him, how he took on this task, how he fought and bit. That was also the decisive reason why he won the last tournament before the World Cup, the Players Championship Finals. Is it really getting going again now? I don't know, but it could be.

When looking at the world rankings, it is noticeable that three players are well above the rest: Van Gerwen, defending champion Peter Wright and Gerwyn Price. Who is the decisive five percent ahead?

At the moment I see Price a tad ahead. The loss to van Gerwen in the semi-finals at the Players Championship Finals wasn't decisive for him either. Price knows he's in very good shape. If he plays well, he's very hard to beat.

With Wright, I'm not exactly sure what kind of World Cup he's going to play. I recently noticed a change in him. He was always the kind of guy who wanted to joke, jumping from right to left on stage. We don't see any of that with him anymore. Instead, he provokes van Gerwen, saying that he would not be a serious opponent at the World Cup. But maybe that's exactly the attitude that will lead Wright back to the world title. I'm curious what that means for his performance.

In the second round there could be the first German-German World Cup duel between Gabriel Clemens and Nico Kurz. A good or an unfortunate draw?

I thought, great, then we will most likely have a German in the third round. And we shouldn't underestimate Andy Hamilton, he'll make it difficult for Nico Kurz on the first lap, he'll slow down and try to slow down the fun. And Nico is not part of the tour, not on the road as a professional. That is why he has hardly any match practice. It is difficult to say whether he will play as well as last year.

What are Gabriel Clemens' chances?

He is now number 31 in the world and has a certain self-image on the big stage. It's a feeling that Nico doesn't have. Clemens would therefore be the favorite against Kurz, which also means pressure for him. He also realizes that the British now see him as a strong challenger. They all know how good this guy is. The only thing missing is some consistency.

How long will it take until one of the German players makes the breakthrough? Max Hopp has knocked on the top of the world in the past, but recently fell significantly behind in the rankings.

Above all, you need a really good major tournament, then you are automatically high in the world rankings. Such a victory can change a lot. I trust Max such a success, Gabriel too. You can't put the boys in cotton wool, but you have to be careful with expectations. Even Gabriel, who is developing well, is not yet in the top 30. And basically there is still no good youth work in Darts Germany. In Germany, darts is ultimately the success of a lone fighter. We don't have a darts academy or a good structure. The Netherlands have a much greater concentration of good players, they are 15 years ahead of us. And of course they also had a huge workhorse in Raymond van Barneveld.

Kevin Schulte spoke to Elmar Paulke.