"I felt like I needed to smack his arse because he is that good" - James Wade stunned by 104 average as defeated opponent praised

James Wade looked right at it from the off in his opening Grand Slam of Darts match. In his 19th appearance at the tournament, he defeated Cam Crabtree 5-1 in a brilliant performance to alieviate any pressure from qualifying to the knockout rounds.

He produced a 104.09 average, but it seemed that 'The Machine' was surprised that he averaged that high in his press conference.

"Honestly, if you'd have asked me, I'd have said it was really 93 or something, you know? So, no, no. Bloody hell. Shocked, really, really shocked. Really shocked," he said.

This new format has been assessed by many of the players as cut-throat and brutal. The groups are now made up of three players, with just one advancing from each group into the knockout phase. A defeat could spell doom from the off, and Wade showcased how fearful the players are of it.

"I think it shows my initial performance, you know, because everyone's scared to death of losing," he said. "You don't want to lose the first game because, as soon as you lose the first game, I think pretty much, unless you're very, very fortunate, you're out."

However, he could still not get over the average. "Yeah, I'm still shell-shocked by the average. He's a great player, you know? I think that may have been a bit of it. It's probably the first TV tournament in the last couple of months where I've actually got on the practice board. I haven't done so much at home, as usual.

"There's a bloke called Mark Wheeler who pushes me all the time, which is really, really annoying. I don't even like him, to be fair. No, I do, Mark. But we've been trying to do half an hour to an hour a day for however many days we can. Today, when I got to the venue, I literally went on the dartboard and probably threw for about an hour and a half, two hours, which is something I haven't been doing. So maybe that's why I averaged 104 and thought I played badly. I've got some kind of rhythm and it felt like quite a natural release. So maybe that's what it was."

While it was not Crabtree's day on the oche, there were some glimmers of the talent he possesses. A 151 checkout followed a 180 for his one and only leg, and if his doubling was a bit better then he could have been a real danger.

Wade was in full praise of the 23-year-old. "He's a great man and all. I'm not going to say what he reminds me of, but yeah, he's a great person," he commented.

"I do actually believe he reminds me of some kind of German aftermarket sauce. But there you go. No, no, he's a quality young man, and I think he's one of the few coming through who I will leave the game to when I'm old and done, which isn't far away. He is quality and, when he's going really, really well, he's really good. I just think he'll be one of the ones who progresses and goes forwards."

Wade started the match with a phenomenal 11-darter with an 81 finish. Apparently, that was very much needed for him to break away from Crabtree. "I think, as I said at the beginning of the game, I felt like I needed to smack his arse because he is that good.

"And you've not seen the first... You've certainly not seen... Obviously, he played here last year. But, you know, I'm glad that he hasn't settled in and I'm glad that he hasn't done what he can do, because he's a nuisance, he is. He's a good player. And a lot of people would be like, "Oh, but he really is." There's a handful of players, you know. There's lots of people who get sung about, and he's one of the ones who doesn't get sung about, but he's bloody, bloody good. And he really is good, you know. Yeah, if he doesn't get through and doesn't do things later on, he's let himself down."

Wade went back to the average, highlighting that he needed to believe in himself more. "No, it shows me that I probably don't believe in myself enough. I think that's the reality," he admitted.

"I thought when I missed, it was doom and gloom rather than, "Oh, it's okay, you can move on." So hopefully I can adjust to that for the next game and enjoy it. Imagine if I could average 104 and enjoy it. It'll only progress, won't it? No sarcasm, there's no sarcasm. If I can play like that and realise I'm playing all right, it's a better thing."

Surprisingly, Wade has not felt at his best in recent times. "I haven't felt great for six to eight weeks, you know. And it's not that anyone's any better; it's just that I'm not in a positive mind. But, you know, I'm going to take that back to my room and just try and beat myself up a little bit and be like, 'Yeah.'"