Record after Christmas
A crazy evening already makes the Darts World Cup historic
By Kevin Schulte
December 23, 2023, 6:56 a.m
Florian Hempel makes a crazy comeback, Martin Schindler plays with remarkable confidence, Gabriel Clemens returns victorious to the place of his greatest success. Three Germans are in the third round of the Darts World Cup and Ricardo Pietreczko is still playing.
“I was actually already eliminated, but I’m still alive,” said a beaming Florian Hempel after the craziest game of his career. The Cologne darts professional defeated the Belgian top player Dimitri Van den Bergh on Friday evening – for the second time after 2021, again in the second round of the Darts World Cup in London.
Hempel didn’t somehow win the game. Van den Bergh looked like the sure winner on several occasions. After the second set, when the Belgian seemed to be comfortably ahead 2-0. In the fourth set, Van den Bergh was able to win a total of three match darts. But Hempel simply couldn’t be defeated that evening, became the comeback king and got the German dream evening on track.
“I lost all feeling in my body when I was leading 2-0 in the first set. I lost the feeling for my darts, but I got it back. This win is very special for me,” said Hempel after the complete crazy gameplay.
Chaotic arrival
For the “Kölsche Jung” it’s now time to go home to the family in the Rhineland. “I have to think about whether I can get off the island by car at all. I tend to fly home from Heathrow, leave the car here in London, leave the darts in it, then there won’t be a problem on the return flight the luggage,” said Hempel, who had to take the ferry at short notice when traveling to the game due to a strike by Eurotunnel workers.
After Christmas, the world number 59 will get it. to do with either Stephen Bunting or Ryan Joyce. In any case, Hempel can play freely, exceeded the target by moving into round three and secured his stay on the professional tour with the surprise victory. After the World Cup, only the top 64 in the world rankings are guaranteed a starting place with the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) for the next twelve months. Hempel would have had to tremble in the event of a defeat against Van den Bergh.
Schindler’s best World Cup performance
Another German didn’t have these worries on Friday evening at London’s Alexandra Palace, but of course Martin Schindler still wanted to take the momentum of Hempel’s victory with him. And the 27-year-old did it perfectly. “The Wall” won 3-1 against the Dutchman Jermaine Wattimena and can therefore return to the British capital after Christmas. In the fifth year of the World Cup, it was only Schindler’s second victory at the most important tournament of the year.
On Thursday evening, Germany’s top player Gabriel Clemens, a sensational semi-finalist last year, had already secured his place in round three. This afternoon, a fourth German, Ricardo Pietreczko, can follow suit. The shooting star from Nuremberg is even a slight favorite against the Englishman Callan Rydz (approx. 2:45 p.m., Sport1/Dazn).
Four German dart players in the last 32 of the World Championship? That would be a Christmas fairy tale. The safe three Germans in round three are already a novelty. Never before have players from Germany been so numerous in the Mecca of darts after the traditional Christmas break.
Netherlands facing darts disgrace?
If Pietreczko makes the four-pack clear today, Darts Germany could even have more third-round participants than the Netherlands. So far only superstar Michael van Gerwen and veteran Raymond van Barneveld have secured their place in the last 32. Only two players can be added: Richard Veenstra and Berry van Peer. For the darts stronghold, the performance is a real disgrace, for darts Germany it is a milestone compared to its neighbors, which have been overpowering for years.
There is still a long way to go to catch up with the Netherlands, even apart from the results of this World Cup. The structural differences between German and Dutch darts are large. But now the density of talent is also increasing in Germany. And the historic performance of the Germans this year could ensure that even more children and young people try out the dartboard.
“It’s great how German darts are developing. We’ve reached a new level,” exulted Schindler on the German dream evening in “Ally Pally”.