Michael Smith has to give up his title defense at the Darts World Championship prematurely and will also lose his status as number one in the world.
The Englishman, nicknamed Bully Boy, suffered a 4-0 defeat against his compatriot Chris Dobey in London.
“Michael is a great kid. But there can only be one winner and I’m glad it was my night,” said Dobey. “I don’t think anyone underestimates me. Everyone knows what I can do. I’ve been pretty consistent in this competition and I’m going to give it my all. I want to be world champion.”
Smith played at a decent level in the World Cup round of 16, but couldn’t match Dobey’s enormous level. Only four legs went to the dethroned champion, who, like his opponent, played an average of 102.
Darts World Cup: Duel for first place in the world rankings
The new number one after the World Cup will be either Michael van Gerwen (Netherlands) or Luke Humphries (England).
Van Gerwen had previously mastered the first major test of the tournament brilliantly. The Dutchman, nicknamed Mighty Mike, clearly won the first round of 16 against Englishman Stephen Bunting 4-0.
Bunting was the most confident player in the tournament so far and had won 4-0 against the German Florian Hempel the day before after an excellent performance.