Maximus Decimus

I think there is a bit of jealousy, but there's also a peculiar strain in people to instantly try and do someone down. I completely agree about the 9 vs 147. The 9-darter is statistically very unlikely, but not an absurdly difficult skill each time. I hit 4 180s last week (get me a tour card already with my 50 average) so have the ability to hit a 9, it's just not very likely. The 147 requires a control of the cue ball that an equivalent player wouldn't have.

Whilst there is a lot of positivity about Littler making another final, I'll never understand the desire of so many people to say 'yeh but it's nowhere near as skillful as snooker' underneath an article about a 17 year old wonder kid making the darts final. It's not even like RU vs RL, where you would expect a level of rivalry. They are two completely different activities that require completely different skill sets. As for the age old 147 vs 9 darter vs hole-in-one argument, there's no real discussion to be had if you think about it for 2 minutes. A hole-in-one is the only one that can be fluked by a novice, a player of my ability in darts could feasibly fluke a 9-darter, whereas an equivalent snooker player couldn't with a 147. That said, statistically when it comes to professionals starting a leg of darts or a frame of snooker, a 147 occurs more often than a 9-darter.

Littler looked very good last night, but it's all set up for a blockbuster final. If there's one remaining player who won't be phased by the occasion it's MVG. He's showed glimpses at times of a level he can go to that can match Littler. I'll be rooting for Littler but would like a more competitive game than either that we saw last night.

Straight forward for MVG. I bet the PDC are praying for Littler to set up a big final tomorrow.

The way he lost that 7th set had me worried we were going to witness another collapse. Rydz has played really well, but MVG has showed his class when it matters. Still in the game at 4-3 but the money's definitely in MVG.

Price is guaranteeing that he'll be booed for another year. I can't see Dobey lose from here...

For all the talk about upsets, 7 of the 8 remaining are still highly ranked. Great start to the QF, Dobey hanging in there to somehow get it back to 2-2.

I've got the same and I also have my odds like this! As it gets closer, I'm worried about MVG so I might cash out depending on what they offer nearer the time. I still can't get my head around the American way of doing odds.

That's looking good for Price at this stage I must say.

Ouch.

I really like Bunting; he does have an odd appearance at first look but he's a nice fella. My prediction for the semis is Dobey, MVG, Bunting and Littler. Price seems inconsistent and I just feel like Dobey will be enough to hold him off. Rydz has been very good, but there's an inevitability that he won't be able to keep it up and that he'll lose his head at some point. Wright can't keep up a 70% checkout rate forever, and Bunting will have enough to see him off. The final will be MVG-Littler (famous last words).

I think scrape is a bit harsh. His average was pretty good, Joyce just wouldn't go away. I think it was a good sign that he stayed confident and didn't capitualte. Last year he never really had a tough game until the final.

I've used them before, and I quite like them. One obvious point is deflections but they're also easier to use than putting in flights all the time. RVB was an early proponent. I suspect if they actually did reduce deflections more people would have them. The downside is cost and availability. Normal flights are ten a penny, whereas a pack of 3 flights is about a fiver IIRC. When they inevitably chip or split, it's annoying to replace them. I've noticed an increase in all-in-one stem and flights, Littler for instance. I've done this for a while purely just because of flights coming out all the time.

He wasn't at his best, but Wright was insane with 70% on doubles. It could just be me but he seems to be becoming the story of this World Championship. Another is Callan Rydz. My 11 year old had always bizarrely been a fan of Rydz ever since he lost to eventual winner Wright about 3 years ago despite being up at one point. It's kind of been a running joke because of his terrible hair. He has the current highest running average and is now 3rd favourite to win. As someone who has followed his career and seen the depths he's been in quite recently, this is just crazy to imagine.

The Littler train rolls on, although again it wasn't plain sailing. Ian White was certainly plucky and determined to bag those Runcorn bragging rights. Best match so far has to be Cullen vs Price, with Cullen falling to a second successive 1 leg shootout.

Damon Heta making it now 16 players who have hit a 9-darter at the Worlds, with only 7 of them going on to win their games.

A record number of seeds have gone out before Christmas. 15 out of 32. Definitely an opportunity for someone else to make big inroads.

Yeh they're pretty common now. I use them, individual flights can be a pain.

Steelers, Ravens, Bears, Chargers, Broncos, Cardinals, Eagles, Buccs, Bills, Colts, Saints, Jaguars, Browns, Packers, Commanders, Lions

Judges very rarely score 10-10 rounds and they didn't in this fight. The reality is that it only takes scoring 2 close rounds to Usyk to change it from a 114-114 to a 116-112. That's what happened here and why I keep making the point that if you thought Usyk won, you are basically arguing about 1 round. I suspect that if they did give out 10-10 rounds then it would have been an Usyk victory by 2/3 rounds instead.

One thing that could be leading to significantly more tension, is the increase in standard and the number of players vying for a limited number of spots. The rankings are purely based on prize-money. There are significant advantages to being top 16, top 32 and top 64. The likes of Wright, Cullen, Wade and Smith have been top 16 for years with little real fear of dropping out. That doesn't seem to be the case suddenly, and the reality is that the Worlds is the biggest chance to get that ranking money. Often players are going in defending significant amounts, like Smith who's just lost £485,000 off his 2-year total. At the end of the day, for many of these players you're talking about their livelihoods. I can't imagine the stress.

Yeh I suspect this is a bit illusory and it's always had a lot of needle. A few of the 'greats' were notoriously bad. Phil Taylor was and is a right one. I was just reading a story from Russ Bray about the first time he met Jocky Wilson at an exhibition. He played him in a leg and despite being ahead he couldn't finish and Russ did. Jocky shook his hand and all was well. About a half-hour later, Jocky followed him into the toilets and started giving it to him and offering him out.

I completely agree. I'm really enjoying it but there does seem something strange about the way a lot of better players are going out. The Littler effect has brought more eyeballs but you wouldn't think it would be enough to create a massive difference to anyone but him. For quite a few of the bigger players, they are under serious pressure to keep their position. Wright, Cullen and Smith definitely fall into this category. To be fair to Cullen (and it's not an excuse) I was gobsmacked when I found out he was 7/2 to beat Nijman. They are the odds that the real underdogs have been getting.

It seeks he was really upset with the media and the bookies for disrespecting him. I kind of get it, but he's embarrassed himself with his actions I think. At the end of the day, his darts did the talking, no need to act like a nob to a presenter.

I'd still be interested. It wouldn't be Mayweather-Pacquiao level for a late fight, but it's not quite the Khan-Brook shambles either.