Rampant Rob Cross first favourite to live up to billing in open Grand Slam of Darts half

Rob Cross is, for now, one of the few world class players not to fail at the Grand Slam of Darts. With a 10-4 victory over Ritchie Edhouse, 'Voltage' qualified for the last eight at the major event in Wolverhampton.

After the exit of Luke Humphries (number one in the world), Michael Smith (number two in the world) and Michael van Gerwen (number three in the world), Cross is the highest ranked player in the world still in the tournament. With Martin Lukeman as an opponent in the quarterfinals, and then Mickey Mansell and Cameron Menzies as possible opponents in the final four, a giant opportunity for Cross to reach another major final glows.

It was a pretty strong performance from the 2023 Grand Slam finalist. His average of 98.68 was fine anyway, but his finishing percentage of 83.3 percent (10/12) in particular is bizarrely strong.

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In the beginning of the match it was a matter of hooking up for Cross. Edhouse scored like crazy, but thanks in part to a 164 finish, Cross stayed level. After 'The Madhouse ' threw an 11-darter for 3-2, Cross took over the initiative. A 14-darter and a 13-darter gave the former world champion his first lead of the match and a 14-darter doubled the lead to 5-3.

The ninth leg went to Edhouse with a 13-darter, before Cross brought the score to 6-4 with a 14-darter and could go into the break with a small margin. Immediately after the break, the 34-year-old Englishman dealt the next blow by throwing out 160. Edhouse then missed three chances for a break, after which Cross hit 110 to make it 8-4. Voltage missed the bullseye for 9-4, which was only his first missed double in the entire match. However, the world number four was allowed to come back and hit the double 8 for 9-4. Cross then finished the job with an 87 finish.

It is already the fifth time in 2024 that Cross has been in the quarterfinals of a ranking major. Earlier this year, "Voltage" made it to the semifinals at the World Darts Championship in London. This was followed by quarterfinals at the UK Open, World Matchplay and the World Grand Prix.

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