"I don't think the standard's particularly great at the moment" - James Wade insists level within current PDC is not as high as people think

James Wade has been at the top of the darts world for more than 20 years. As such, the 10-time major winner is well placed to pass judgment on the current level in the PDC. And that, according to the 41-year-old Englishman, is not as high as many people think.

Wade, of course, is an incredibly respected name in the darts world. At a young age he made his debut with the BDO and in 2004 he made the move to the PDC. Barely three years later, at the age of 24, he had already won the first two majors of his career. He has won most major tournaments at least once, with only the World Darts Championship, the Grand Slam of Darts and the Players Championship Finals missing from his impressive list of honours.

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Currently though, Wade has dropped to 14th in the world rankings. After all, it has been since 2021 (UK Open) that he managed to win a major title. 'The Machine' is therefore not satisfied with his current level of form. "When the easier games are coming my way, when I should be doing something, I'm not performing," Wade told Sky Sports' Love The Darts podcast. "My timing's awful at the moment and that's what I need to get right."

James 'The Machine' Wade

As mentioned, many people these days talk about how high the level of the PDC is currently. According to the vastly experienced Wade though, it's not at the highest level it has been during his career. "I don't think the standard's particularly great at the moment," he insists. "The high end is good, but it's not what I feel people are talking about. There's opportunities there and there's lots of players not taking them."

"I don't think it's what it's hyped up to be," Wade continues. "What I feel is there's more better players that can win tournaments, there's more than a few of them now, but I don't feel the big numbers are coming and I don't feel that the magical games are that in-depth in tournaments now. I just don't feel that the big numbers are there. I watch very, very little darts, so I'm probably the worst person to ask, but I don't see that the standards are as mighty as what some people talk about. It's magical, you know, and it's amazing. But I just feel there have been other years and other times where it's probably been a bit better. That's my experience from what I see anyway."

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