Wattimena surprised by selection for World Cup of Darts: 'In all fairness, I had not expected this'

It was a pleasant surprise for Jermaine Wattimena when he heard he's invited to play with Michael van Gerwen at the World Cup of Darts in June.

The decision was made by the PDC on Monday. Wattimena was preferred over Raymond van Barneveld and Jeffrey de Zwaan. The 31-year-old expected that the second spot would go to 'Barney', as he is playing his last season on the PDC Tour. ''The messages are coming in and I want to thank everyone for their support and congratulations. In all fairness I had not expected this. I thought Raymond would have been given the spot because he's retiring after this season and he won the title last year'', the Dutchman said on his Facebook. ''This is the reason why I play darts, to play tournaments like this. It's a nice event to put on my CV, especially when you look to all the effort I have put in. I'm playing my fifth season on the PDC circuit and fought for the place where I am now. That took a lot of time and energy.'' Finally, Wattimena had a small word of appreciation for Van Barneveld, who for the World Cup of Darts. ''Ray, thank you for your message'', the upcoming Dutch darts international said.

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