Dragutin Horvat at a loss after defeat to Mike De Decker: "After my first leg it was all for nothing"

Dragutin Horvat lost with ease in his first round match of the PDC World Darts Championship. He lost to Belgian Mike De Decker surprisingly clearly with 3-0 in sets.

The match started positively for Hercules. He was able to take the throw from his opponent in the very first leg of the first set, but then failed to confirm the break. "Everything was just right. I soaked up a lot, everything was wonderful, everything was great. I also felt great on stage, everything worked well. Only my game didn't work," explained Horvat in an interview with Elmar Paulke on DAZN after the match.

"The preparation was great, the people who are here with me are great, the location, everything is great. Everything was organized. It was only after my first leg that everything kind of went to hell."

If you have followed Horvat's performances in recent months, it quickly becomes clear that with an average of 83.65, he has only just begun to show the performance he is capable of.

"I didn't show what I can do for a minute or a second. Nothing came together. My first dart came, but then the other two didn't come at all. Or the second came, then the first and the third didn't come. It just didn't want to!" the Hessian reflected on his match in retrospect and alluded to the fact that the triples were simply missing in his match.

"It was totally surprising for me, because what I played yesterday and today in the warm-up and in training, it all worked, it worked wonderfully. I wasn't nervous, I wasn't excited either. I had fun! I even had a warm hand, which I hardly ever have when playing darts."

Finally, Horvat praised his opponent's game: "Mike De Decker was really very good on his doubles. He didn't let anything get to him. I should have taken the chances I had. And if you don't take them, you lose. He deserved to win, you can't argue with that."