Cross reflects on early World Championship defeat ahead of Premier League: "It was a massive eye-opener"

Rob Cross was runner-up last year in the Premier League and tonight in Aberdeen he will begin his third season in the biggest roadshow in darts.

Despite that, he crashed out in the second round of the PDC World Championship in December and it was an experience that Cross himself wasn't pleased about.

"I weren't too happy with myself, it was probably the hardest point I've been through there losing first game. It was a massive eye-opener," said Cross to LiveDarts.

He reflected on his preparation ahead of the season beginning with tournaments coming thick and fast on an ever growing PDC Calendar and he admitted that he has had a balance since the World Championship.

"I had a nice four weeks off, I didn't even look at a dartboard in fairness. In the last three weeks I've worked hard, I've tried getting my game where it needs to be."

Speaking on this year's Premier League, Cross himself added that he is probably the most at ease he has been heading into it in his three year stint so far: "I thought in most weeks last year I was consistent. I adapted from my first year to last year, I knew what was coming. I felt easier with my calendar, this year there are no worries there."

In terms of that schedule, Cross said that picking and choosing will likely not happen at least in long stints and that he will aim to take a short amount of time off to keep himself fresh: "If I do take any time off this year, I'll make it in shorter stints instead of missing two weekends in a row. Try and keep it a bit less and maybe spread it out a bit more."