(INTERVIEW) Raman gives praise to WDF on running of World Championship: "Behind the scenes everything went very professionally"

Brian Raman was involved during the WDF Lakeside World Championship last week. The Riddler crashed out in the quarterfinals against Richard Veenstra and from now on he will be focusing on the PDC.

Raman finished last year as number one on the world ranking list of the WDF. Normally he would start as the first head of the series at the beginning of January at the WDF World Championship. However, because of the pandemic, the tournament was moved to the beginning of April. One problem: Raman had meanwhile obtained a PDC Tour Card and that means you can't play in any other federation. Fortunately, common sense prevailed and the WDF and PDC agreed to make an exception, so players with a Tour Card, who had previously qualified, could still participate.

The 25-year-old Belgian took advantage of the opportunity and last week he played at the legendary Lakeside Country Club in Frimley Green, England. "It was nice to be on the Lakeside stage for once, I had a good throw. Unfortunately my poor performance in the quarter finals was punished immediately", says Raman in conversation with Dartsnews.com.

Raman therefore had the feeling that there was more to it. "Absolutely! If you look at the tournament as a whole, you see that there are players who threw less and they get away with it. My lesser game made the tournament stop for me straight away. On the other hand, I have to be honest and say that the responsibility for that lies entirely with myself. I should have taken my chances to go through.

Flawless organisation

After the demise of the BDO, this was the first time the WDF organised the World Cup. "This World Championship went off without a hitch! It soon became clear that they had prepared everything well, behind the scenes everything went very professionally and it was very well organised. The interviews also went very smoothly. I did not encounter a single obstacle this year, which was quite different two years ago when the entire World Championship was in doubt and the organisation was constantly stressing during the tournament. A big pat on the back for the WDF!

Lakeside is often described as 'The Home of World Darts'. "Like many people I dreamt as a child of being able to stand there one day. I got that chance this year and I understand why people find it an iconic venue. The atmosphere is sublime, it gives a special feeling to go on stage there and play your match."

Despite the agreement between PDC and WDF, there were still two (Mario Vandenbogaerde and Ross Montgomery) of the seven players with a Tour Card who declined the invitation to take part in the World Championship. "I never considered that myself," Raman says. "I did the WDF Tour to qualify for it and normally the World Championship would take place before Q-School, so I would have been there anyway. After I got my Tour Card, I was resigned to the fact that I was not allowed to play the World Championship. But when I was invited back because of the exception, I thought this was a unique opportunity that I accepted with both hands!

Difference in professionalism and prize money

Early this year Raman already played some Pro Tours at the PDC and is therefore well placed to assess the difference between tournaments at the PDC and the WDF. "Especially the behaviour of the players and the professionalism of the organisation are a world of difference. At the WDF people still sit around the table talking and laughing until five minutes before the match.

"The organisation does its best, but each tournament has different management, so it does not always run smoothly. At the PDC, everyone prepares in their own way to start the tournament. You immediately feel a whole different (more professional) atmosphere when you arrive at the venue and the organisation is always impeccable. Also, the prize money is much higher with the PDC than with the WDF.

Finally, we asked Raman about his goals for the rest of the year. "I just want to do my utmost on every tournament. Qualifying for Ally Pally would be the icing on the cake!"