VIDEO: "Robert Owen is a good player and he showed that" - No excuses for Niels Zonneveld after World Darts Championship defeat
PDC
Niels Zonneveld could not emerge victorious against Robert Owen in the first round of the 2025 PDC World Darts Championship on Monday night. The Dutch darter started successfully, but eventually lost 3-1 in sets.
''I'm incredibly gutted of course,'' Zonneveld said afterwards during his press conference. ''For my feeling I didn't even throw super bad, but the moments were just in his favor and then you just run into a defeat.''
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According to Zonneveld, the loss had nothing to do with nerves. ''Beforehand, I was nervous but now I had the idea of 'we're going to go against it and do everything to beat him'. But yes, it didn't work out and I can't blame the nerves."
On paper, Owen was one of the toughest opponents Zonneveld could face. The Welshman was the last player to gain entry to the World Darts Championship through the Pro Tour circuit, but because Jeffrey de Graaf had qualified through both the Scandinavian tour and the Pro Tour, Owen was put in the lineup of international qualifiers.
''I just think Robert Owen is a good player,'' Zonneveld acknowledged. ''He showed that too, he does the good things at the good moments. I just had to be sharp and for my feeling I was. The preparation went well, the preparation towards London as well. I can't blame myself for that. In the end I didn't reward myself on the stage.''
So this defeat also means that Zonneveld has once again failed to survive Christmas at the World Darts Championship. 'Triple Z' does not plan to completely cut himself off from the tournament in the coming weeks. "I will still turn on darts at home, but I will sit in front of the tube with a bitter feeling," said Zonneveld, who did manage to keep his Tour Card for the first time after two seasons.
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