Meikle reveals Van Gerwen chat after Minehead built confidence: "I don't want to be known as a slow player"

After surviving a Lisa Ashton fightback to successfully book his spot in round 2 of the 2023 PDC World Darts Championship, Ryan Meikle has revealed that a conversation with Michael van Gerwen gave him the self-belief he needed.

"MvG has helped me believe in myself," Meikle said. "I don't want to say too much but after Michael beat me in Minehead he told me a few things which I don't think I knew before but I needed to. A bit more confidence and I think it paid off tonight."

All that newfound self-confidence was needed from Meikle when Lisa Ashton came back from 2-0 down to force a deciding set. "She punished me for six/seven legs to get it back to 2 all. It was my own fault but I'm just lucky to come through."

During the match, Meikle had to deal with a partisan crowd in his opponents' favour, something that may well be the case again in round 2. Whilst some of the audience booed as he took his throw, Meikle admits it's the online abuse received that hurts most. "I take a lot of grief online being a bit slower than the other players," he says. "It is something I've tried to work on, not just for them but for me."

Making it into the 2nd round for the second consecutive year, Meikle will be hoping to go one step better than last year when he fell to a straight sets defeat to eventual champion Peter Wright. This time around it's former 5-time World Champion Raymond van Barneveld who lies in wait for Meikle. "The next thing on my list is to win a second-round game in the Worlds." the Suffolk native says. "I want to be in at Christmas, make that Turkey taste a bit sweeter."