"I put way too much pressure on myself going into the Ally Pally": Wade already onto 2023 goals after World Darts Championship exit

James Wade lost out to Jim Williams in his opener at 2022/23 PDC World Darts Championship as one of the only seeds to lose in the opening round but for 'The Machine', he remains philosophical about his defeat.

Wade believes he put too much pressure on himself and that he is now onto next season already.

"As the dust has settled in the last few days, I have become more philosophical about the exit and am now just set on achieving my goals next year – both on and off the oche. It is all well and good being wise after the event, but I know now that I put way too much pressure on myself going into the Ally Pally and it was counterproductive," said Wade on Daily Star's column.

"I was nervous and unsettled in my match against Jim Williams. Sometimes you can get away with that but in a match that is only first to three sets, there is no hiding place. It is no secret that I would love to win the World Championship, it is the only TV major that has eluded me. It is the question that I am always asked and I would like to provide an emphatic answer to it."

"Talking of 2023, it will actually be my 20th full year on the PDC Tour which is pretty unbelievable. I know most of you assumed I was only about 25 from my youthful good looks," he added.

"While it does seem like a lifetime ago that I first played on the tour, I must remind myself that I haven’t even turned 40 yet and many of the top players didn’t really get going into way past that mark. Gary Anderson won his first world title at 45 and Peter Wright at 50, so there is a real chance that my best is yet to come."