Bullet-proof sense here. What were the organisers expecting?
It has been left to darts stars Michael van Gerwen and Gerwyn Price to speak sense amid the “Covid bomb” that has ravaged the William Hill World Darts Championship.
Van Gerwen and fellow Dutchman Vincent van der Voort were already forced to pull out of the tournament after testing positive for Covid-19. The latest withdrawal from the tournament arrived today as World No.14 Dave Chisnall was confirmed as Covid positive.
Chisnall was due to face Luke Humphries in the Last 32 of the championship, on Wednesday, but is out of the running. Humphries is the latest competitor to get a bye into the next round.
Dave Chisnall reacts during his second round win over Mike De Decker at the William Hill World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace. (Photo by Luke Walker/Getty Images)Gerwyn Price has his say about World Darts Championship
The Chisnall news comes hot on the heels of van Gerwen being forced to pull out of the tournament, on Tuesday.
“Really disappointed, confused, angry the way how my world championship is ending,” van Gerwen stated. “Never expected this outcome as I thought I did everything in my possibility to avoid it. Also ain’t got any symptoms.”
With three top stars pulling out of the tournament, just as it gets to the real battle of the best, World No.1 Gerwyn Price had his say. On Instagram, the Welshman declared:
“Tournament needs to be postponed.”
Having stated that the tournament was being “devalued” by the withdrawals, on Tuesday, Price had more to say about the growing unease. He admitted that a postponement ‘probably isn’t the best option’ but said he would not disagree if organisers pulled the plug for now.
Price is due to play Dirk van Duijvenbode in the Last 32 on Wednesday evening. At present, the World Darts Championship show goes on.
