Raymond van Barneveld's World Championships fairy tale ended by Rob Cross
- News Feeds
- 24 December 2021
Dutchman dumped out in second round despite dominating opening set.
Raymond van Barneveld saw his Alexandra Palace fairy tale come to an abrupt end as Rob Cross beat him in the second round of the World Championships.
Van Barneveld came out of retirement earlier this year and many fancied his chances of a decent run in the tournament.
However, 11th seed and 2018 world champion Cross proved too powerful for him, despite the Dutchman making a fine start to the match, including a 170 checkout.
But the 54-year-old's form deteriorated thereafter and Cross played well enough to dominate the last three sets, losing just three legs.
Cross admitted he struggled to handle the atmosphere initially, telling Sky Sports: "It was mental. Twenty-four months with Covid I haven't had a crowd like this and that first set I just couldn't settle.
"Fair play to Raymond, he played absolutely brilliant. I think from there I started to settle a little bit more but it was a hard game. I've been playing so, so well, I've put a lot of time into this. I'm just so glad that I got the win."
Cross will take on Daryl Gurney in the third round after Christmas while there were also victories in the evening session for Danny Noppert and Gabriel Clemens.
Earlier, seventh seed Jose De Souza came from two sets down to defeat Jason Lowe while Alan Soutar won a dramatic clash to knock out Mensur Suljovic, taking an extended final leg 6-4 having trailed by two sets and two legs.
