Start on Sunday
First surprise at the Darts World Cup
12/16/2024 – 10:02 a.mReading time: 2 minutes
Nothing is impossible at the Darts World Cup in London. The start on Sunday also showed this – Keane Barry was able to prevail there.
The 2025 Darts World Cup only started on Sunday and there was already a surprise in the “Ally Pally” at the start. Keane Barry won 3-1 against Kim Huybrechts. The 22-year-old Irishman is now in the second round and has to prevail against Gerwyn Price. Barry is in 52nd place in the PDC world rankings, Huybrechts is in 41st place.
Barry’s experience was already evident on Sunday. He and his opponent confidently secured the throws in the first two legs. In the third leg, Huybrechts was on a double after nine darts. However, the nerves then became noticeable because the 39-year-old then missed six darts on the outer ring and Barry was left ripped off. He punished Huybrechts with a 112 checkout. However, the Belgian fought back. In the fifth leg the first set went to him.
Despite a strong start to the doubles, Keane Barry had to chase a deficit in scoring at the start of his game against Kim Huybrechts. But the Irishman quickly found his rhythm: Already in the second set he showed with a maximum and a decisive 108 finish that he was ready to take on the fight. The equalizer to make the set 1-1 was the reward we deserved.
The game remained even in the third set. Huybrechts showed strong nerves when he hit double 16 with his last dart and won the first leg. But Barry countered, equalized and saved his throw in the third leg. When the Belgian missed the bull for a 170 at the crucial moment, Barry took the chance and took the set for a 2-1 lead.
Even in the fourth set, Barry left no doubt that he was getting closer to victory. He put the Belgian under further pressure with a saved throw. Huybrechts fought back and hit the rarely used double 13 to equalize, but Barry showed no weakness: he closed the bag with a hit on double 8 and a safe last leg.