Kuivenhoven prepares for World Championship debut: "It is a dream to be there on the big stage"

Maik Kuivenhoven will make his PDC World Darts Championship debut next week when he takes on Matthew Edgar.

Kuivenhoven has had a good year so far including multiple wins over Michael van Gerwen and despite knowing that it will be a task to beat Edgar, he's confident.

"I'm not afraid of him beforehand. He is a stable player, but he has only just qualified for the tournament. But I feel playing against him, I know that I have to work hard, '' he tells Omroep West .

In the event of a win, Kuivenhoven will play against 16th seed Mensur Suljovic in the second round. "He can play very well, but hasn't shown it lately. Let's see how that goes." I'm not worried about it. First play against Edgar on Sunday. You have to play this tournament match by match. "

The 32-year-old is looking forward to his World Championship debut. Making it to this tournament was also the ultimate goal for him. "It is a dream to be there on the big stage", he says enthusiastically. "This is the second year that I play in the PDC and by then you want to be at the World Championship. Last year it didn't work out, so it had to happen this year."

Now that Kuivenhoven has qualified for the World Championship, he also wants to assert himself there. "You are at the World Championship to win games. You also want to get as far as possible. Even if I have to say: when I reach the second or third round, I am happy. Then I have reached my goal. Anything else is a bonus. It is also good for my brand awareness if I get far. That is important for all kinds of periphery matters in darts.