Mike De Decker blames the crowd after PDC World Darts Championship humiliation: “Booing and whistling shouldn’t be normal”

The PDC World Darts Championship came to an early end for the Belgian contingent. Mike De Decker suffered a very painful defeat on Tuesday afternoon against Kenyan debutant David Munyua and exited in the first round of the tournament at Alexandra Palace. In a match that swung both ways, 'The Real Deal' let a comfortable position slip and ultimately had to concede 2-3 in sets.

For De Decker, the elimination meant not only sporting disappointment but also emotional frustration. Afterwards, the Mechelen native criticised the behavior of the crowd, which clearly took sides against him in the decisive phase.

The match initially went exactly to plan for De Decker. Facing a visibly nervous Munyua, who was making his debut on the worlds stage, the Belgian struck immediately. With an early break and solid play, he built a comfortable lead in the opening set, resulting in a convincing 3-0 set win.

At that point, little seemed amiss. De Decker looked steady, while Munyua struggled to find his level. But the picture changed quickly. In the second set, the Belgian’s level dropped significantly and the match became erratic. Munyua capitalised, went 0-2 up, and even had a dart to take the set. He missed, allowing De Decker to escape and, with a 3-2 set win, seemingly keep control.

The third set followed a similar pattern. Again De Decker started hesitantly, while Munyua missed chances to pull away. This time, the Kenyan did manage to strike at the right moments. Despite match darts for De Decker, Munyua took the set and made a major step towards an upset.

From that moment on, the crowd visibly turned against the Belgian as well. With the score at 2-2 in sets, Alexandra Palace firmly backed Munyua, who could make history as the first Kenyan with a worlds victory. De Decker, who failed to average 80 in multiple sets, visibly struggled to turn the tide and faced boos and whistles from the stands.

In the deciding fifth set, De Decker started well with an 11-darter, but Munyua seized full control with a superb 135 checkout. The Kenyan played with freedom, hit his doubles, and ruthlessly ended the Belgian’s worlds campaign. Only disappointment remained for De Decker, while Munyua produced one of the biggest shocks in World Championship history.

Shortly after, De Decker responded graciously towards his opponent. “Well done, David,” he posted on Instagram. But he also made his frustration with the atmosphere at Alexandra Palace abundantly clear. The Belgian did not spare the crowd in his assessment.

“But the crowd? Wow... Booing and whistling shouldn’t be normal or encouraged. You’re the first to complain when it happens to British players in Europe, yet you do exactly the same when the tournament is in the United Kingdom,” said the former World Grand Prix champion.