Things haven’t been going right since the World Cup title. Michael Smith has lost his status as darts leader. There are two candidates for his successor at Alexandra Palace.
Teleshopping with a magnificent view won’t work for Michael Smith this time. The dethroned darts champion from England not only has to say goodbye as defending champion at the World Cup, but will also lose his status as number one on January 4th after exactly one year.
“Michael is a great guy. But there could only be one winner and I’m glad it was my night,” said Chris Dobey after his furious 4-0 win over Smith.
The previous year he had achieved the World Cup triumph with strong double ratings and the following night he watched teleshopping programs in his hotel – the huge Sid Waddell Trophy could be seen in the corner.
Mixed year
This time the farewell to Alexandra Palace in London was much more sober. The knockout in the round of 16 against the excellent Dobey was at most surprising in its clarity. The Bully Boy, as Smith is called, had already revealed weaknesses against Kevin Doets (3:2) and Madars Razma (4:1). The last darts professional to become world champion twice in a row remains the Scot Gary Anderson (2015 and 2016).
The year since winning the World Cup has been very mixed for the 33-year-old Smith. 13 professionals earned more prize money in the 2023 calendar year than the Englishman, who is now being replaced as number one. Candidates for this are the Dutchman Michael van Gerwen and Luke Humphries from England. The ranking at the PDC World Association is calculated over a period of two years.
Source: Stern
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