VIDEO | "It felt better than it was" - Alexander Merkx victorious on Ally Pally debut despite averaging in the 70s

Although it wasn't an Ally Pally classic by any means, Alexander Merkx emerged victorious over Stephen Burton in his PDC World Darts Championship debut on Friday afternoon, setting up a second round meeting with 'Hollywood' Chris Dobey. 

Despite the straight sets victory for the Dutchman, Merkx's play was anything but flawless. His average was down at a disappointing at 78.41, with Burton's average was even worse at 75.63. For Merkx's though, the average couldn't be less important given the fact that he emerged victorious. 

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"It felt really good. It felt better than it was I think, because I saw the averages," Merkx reflects of the victory and his performance when speaking to the English darting media in his press conference afterwards. "I'm very proud."

Although this is the first appearance of Merkx at the Alexandra Palace, the Dutchman has once competed at Lakeside, reaching the third round in 2023 and has performed more than admirably on the Challenge Tour in 2024, keeping himself in the mix for a Tour Card, although those hopes were dashed by the aftereffects of Robert Owen's victory over Gabriel Clemens knocking Wesley Plaisier out of the top 65. "The Challenge Tour gave me a lot of faith. I think it is a very strong competition playing there, I think a lot of players say that at Challenge Tour, the level is about the same as the Pro Tour, but it's two tournaments a day and that's what makes it hard. But the level is really good yeah," he explains.

As mentioned, in the second round Chris Dobey now awaits for Merkx. A much improved performance will likely be needed to test last year's losing quarter-finalist at the Ally Pally. Can Merkx show that better version of himself? "I hope so!" he answers defiantly.

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