“People were saying, ‘you can’t get your first win’ – but now it’s happened”: Wattimena breaks World Matchplay duck

Jermaine Wattimena finally got his long-awaited first victory on the World Matchplay stage – and he couldn’t hide his relief as he dumped out Peter Wright speaking to the media including DartsNews post win.

Wattimena finally got his first win at the fifth attempt on the Winter Gardens stage and said that it was relief at the end after being told in his words that he can't get his first win so it was about proving others and his own self doubt wrong.

“People were saying, ‘you can’t get your first win,’” Wattimena said after defeating Peter Wright in Blackpool. “But it’s happened now. The dice rolled my way, and I’m just happy to be through to the second round, to be honest.”

The Dutchman, who had previously failed to make it past the first hurdle at the iconic Winter Gardens venue, produced a confident display in the early stages before nerves threatened to creep back in.

“I was a little bit nervous at the start,” he admitted. “But some good finishing got me 4–1 up in the first half. Then near the end, I got nervous again because of those voices in the back of your head – ‘you can’t get that first win.’ But I stayed focused, and I got over the line.”

Wattimena’s victory came against a struggling Peter Wright, who has shown only glimpses of his top form in recent months. But the Dutchman was quick to dismiss any suggestion that his opponent’s dip made the result less meaningful.

“For me, the draw doesn’t matter,” he said. “You have to play your own game. You still have to play your A-game. I think neither of us played our A-game today – we were both off it a little bit – but a win is a win, and I’m happy with it.”

The 2025 season has already seen Wattimena put in a string of solid performances, and his form appears to be trending in the right direction heading into the crucial latter stages of the darting calendar.

“I’m looking forward to the tournaments I’ve qualified for,” he said. “But I’m going to try to get in a bit more practice. I think my throw has changed a little bit from a few years ago – I’ve worked hard on it. Back then I was playing well, but then I started to fall off. Maybe taking a few steps back was a good thing, because now every step forward feels more valuable.”

As for his goals moving forward? “I hope there’s more to come,” he said. “I try to work hard for myself, so yeah – I believe there is.”

Next up was confirmed to be Luke Littler who hammered Ryan Searle. Wattimena has yet to beat Littler in their meetings, but he isn’t dwelling on that history. “I’ve never played badly against him,” he said. “I’ll worry about it over the next few days – I’m not thinking about it now.”

Does Littler’s presence require a different approach, in the view of Wattimena it doesn't as if he harbours any ambitions he will be able to believe in himself.

“No. If you want to win a tournament, you have to beat the best players in the world,” Wattimena replied. “He’s the best player in the world at the moment, I think. But you can still win a game. If I take my chances and finish well, maybe I can win.”

And when asked what had changed this year compared to previous campaigns where he'd fallen short? “I’ve learned more over time,” he said. “When Peter started coming back, of course I thought about the other losses. I gave him a chance, but I’m happy that I got it done.”

It’s been a standout start to the tournament for the Dutch contingent – with five players already through and Van Gerwen versus Van Barneveld still to come. “Dutch delight, right?” Wattimena laughed. “Five out of five already – and maybe six out of six. But of course, one’s got to lose that one!”