William O'Connor qualified for the second round at the
World Darts Championship on Wednesday afternoon without any problems. Without surrendering a leg, he defeated Bhav Patel 3-0 in sets.
''It was alright,'' O'Connor said after notching a 98 average and a 64 percent finish percentage. ''I thought my doubles were good. I took advantage of positions I got myself in, but at the same time I had too many trebleless visits. I need to sort that out. I'm happy to get the win, on to the next round now against Chris Dobey," stated 'The Magpie' during his press conference.
With Patel, the Irishman faced an unfamiliar opponent. ''I've got some dodgy draws over the last couple years, so you learn to deal with it. I have not seen him play before and didn't know what to expect. I thought to myself just expect a mid-90 average and just get stuck in. I played my own game. When he hit a couple silly scores I jumped in and got it over the line."
Last year, O'Connor made it to the semifinals at the UK Open; this year, the 37-year-old Irishman did not fare as well. "Poor enough, to be honest about it. But we can put it right now at the end of the year," he admits. ''What happened in the past is behind you. What's in front of you, you can change. I put in the time, practice and effort. What's going to be is to be, that's it. You can't try any harder than your best."
As previously mentioned, O'Connor will play Chris Dobey, the number seventeen seeded player, in the next round. O'Connor expects a tough match against the reigning Masters champion. ''I know Chris and I know what he's capable of. I'm expecting him to play very very well and I will be ready for that. I hope I can either replicate this performance or do a little bit better. I know what I can do, so I just got to do it."