The 2021 PDC World Darts Championship
(known for sponsorship reasons as the 2021 William Hill World Darts Championship) was the 28th
World Championship
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
organised by the
Professional Darts Corporation
The Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) is a professional darts organisation in the United Kingdom, established in 1992 when a group of leading players split from the British Darts Organisation (BDO) to form what was initially called the World ...
since it
separated from the
British Darts Organisation
The British Darts Organisation (BDO) was a darts organisation founded on 7 January 1973 by Olly Croft. Made up of 66 member counties, it oversaw professional, semi-professional and amateur darts competitions in Britain. The BDO was a founder ...
. The collapse of the BDO in September 2020 and subsequent postponement of the
World Darts Federation
The World Darts Federation (WDF) is a sport governing body and (along with the PDC) a tournament organiser for the game of darts. It was formed in 1974 by representatives of the original fourteen founding members. Membership is open to the natio ...
-sanctioned event meant that this edition was the first undisputed World Championship in the sport since
John Lowe John Lowe may refer to:
Sports
* John Lowe (darts player) (born 1945), English darts player.
* John Lowe (footballer) (1912–1995), Scottish football player
* John Lowe (rugby league), English rugby league footballer
* John Lowe (cricketer) (18 ...
won the
Embassy
A diplomatic mission or foreign mission is a group of people from a state or organization present in another state to represent the sending state or organization officially in the receiving or host state. In practice, the phrase usually deno ...
in
1993
File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...
. The event took place at the
Alexandra Palace
Alexandra Palace is a Grade II listed entertainment and sports venue in London, situated between Wood Green and Muswell Hill in the London Borough of Haringey. It is built on the site of Tottenham Wood and the later Tottenham Wood Farm. Origi ...
in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
from 15 December 2020 – 3 January 2021, and was played
behind closed doors, except for the first day of the tournament, due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
.
Peter Wright was the defending champion, after defeating
Michael van Gerwen
Michael van Gerwen (; born 25 April 1989) is a Dutch professional darts player. He is currently ranked number 3 in the world, having been number 1 from 2014 to 2021. He is also a three-time PDC World Champion, having won the title in 2014, 2 ...
7–3 in the
2020 final. However, he was shockingly eliminated by Gabriel Clemens in the third round.
Gerwyn Price
Gerwyn Stephen Price (born 7 March 1985) is a Welsh professional darts player and former professional rugby union and rugby league player. Nicknamed "The Iceman", he competes in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC), where he is cu ...
won the World Championship for the first time in his career, beating
Gary Anderson 7–3 in the final. As a result of winning the title, Gerwyn took over from
Michael van Gerwen
Michael van Gerwen (; born 25 April 1989) is a Dutch professional darts player. He is currently ranked number 3 in the world, having been number 1 from 2014 to 2021. He is also a three-time PDC World Champion, having won the title in 2014, 2 ...
as world number 1.
Steve Beaton
Steve Beaton (born 5 April 1964) is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He won the BDO World Darts Championship in 1996 and is a former World No. 1.
Background
Beaton was born in Co ...
played in a record 30th consecutive World Championship (including the BDO version), breaking the record he jointly held with
Phil Taylor, but lost in the first round to
Diogo Portela
Diogo Portela (born 12 June 1988) is a Brazilian professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) and World Darts Federation (WDF) events.
Career
Originally from Rio de Janeiro, Portela first came into prominence in ...
.
James Wade
James Martin Wade (born 6 April 1983) is an English professional darts player, currently playing in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). He became the youngest player to win a major PDC title, when he won the 2007 World Matchplay at the ...
hit his first World Championship
nine-dart finish
A nine-dart finish, also known as a nine-darter, is a perfect leg or single game in the sport of darts. The object of the game is to score a set number of points, most commonly 501; in order to win, a player must reach the target total exactly an ...
and the first PDC World Championship nine-darter since
2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...
in his third round defeat to
Stephen Bunting
Stephen Bunting (born 9 April 1985) is an English professional darts player who competes in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). Nicknamed The Bullet, Bunting won the 2014 BDO World Darts Championship and is a twice former Worl ...
.
Format
All matches were played as single in, double out; requiring the players to score 501 points to win a
leg
A leg is a weight-bearing and animal locomotion, locomotive anatomical structure, usually having a columnar shape. During locomotion, legs function as "extensible struts". The combination of movements at all joints can be modeled as a single ...
, finishing on either a double or the
bullseye
Bullseye or Bull's Eye may refer to:
Symbols
* ◎ (Unicode U+25CE BULLSEYE), in the Geometric Shapes Unicode block
* (Unicode U+0298 LATIN LETTER BILABIAL CLICK), the phonetic symbol for bilabial click
Animals and plants
* Bull's Eye, ''Euryo ...
. Matches were played to
set
Set, The Set, SET or SETS may refer to:
Science, technology, and mathematics Mathematics
*Set (mathematics), a collection of elements
*Category of sets, the category whose objects and morphisms are sets and total functions, respectively
Electro ...
format, with each set being the best of five legs (first to three). A rule which has been in place for previous tournaments, where the final set had to be won by two clear legs, was removed in order to prevent sessions overrunning.
The matches got longer as the tournament progresses:
*First round: Best of five sets
*Second round: Best of five sets
*Third round: Best of seven sets
*Fourth round: Best of seven sets
*Quarter-finals: Best of nine sets
*Semi-finals: Best of eleven sets
*Final: Best of thirteen sets
Prize money
The prize money for the tournament was £2,500,000 in total – the same as in the previous year. The winner's share was £500,000.
Qualification
Qualifiers
The top 32 from the
PDC Order of Merit The PDC Order of Merit is a world ranking system used by one of the darts organisations, the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). Following the 2007 PDC World Darts Championship it superseded a world ranking system based on points being awarded fo ...
began the competition in the second round. The 32 highest ranked players on the PDC Pro Tour Order of Merit (not already qualified) and 32 qualifiers from around the world began in the first round.
Order of Merit
''Second Round (Seeded)''
''(Quarter-finals)''
''(Third round)''
(Champion)
''(Second round)''
''(Second round)''
''(Third round)''
''(Third round)''
''(Semi-finals)''
''(Fourth round)''
''(Second round)''
''(Quarter-finals)''
''(Fourth round)''
''(Runner-up)''
''(Third round)''
''(Quarter-finals)''
''(Fourth round)''
''(Third round)''
''(Third round)''
''(Fourth round)''
''(Third round)''
''(Second round)''
''(Third round)''
''(Second round)''
''(Third round)''
''(Third round)''
''(Semi-finals)''
''(Fourth round)''
''(Second round)''
''(Fourth round)''
''(Third round)''
''(Fourth round)''
''(Third round)''
Pro Tour Order of Merit
''First Round''
# ''(First round)''
# ''(Fourth round)''
# ''(Quarter-finals)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(First round – withdrew)''
# ''(Third round)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(Third round)''
# ''(First round)''
# ''(First round)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(Third round)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(First round)''
# ''(First round)''
# ''(First round)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(First round)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(Second round)''
# ''(First round)''
# ''(Second round)''
International Qualifiers
''First Round''
* – ''PDC Women's Series'' ''(First round)''
* – ''CDC USA Series'' ''(Third round)''
* – ''DPA Pro Tour'' ''(First round)''
* – ''PDC Development Tour'' ''(First round)''
* – ''
World Youth Champion'' ''(First round)''
* – ''CDC Canadian Series'' ''(First round)''
* – ''African Qualifier'' ''(Second round)''
* – ''UK Tour Card Holders' Qualifier'' ''(Second round)''
* – ''PDC Challenge Tour'' ''(First round)''
* – ''PDJ Japanese Championship'' ''(Second round)''
* – ''Indian Darts Federation''
''(First round)''
* - ''EADC Qualifier'' ''(First round)''
* – ''PDC Women's Series'' ''(First round)''
* – ''PDC Asia Philippines Qualifier'' ''(First round)''
* – ''PDC Nordic & Baltic'' ''(First round)''
* – ''UK Tour Card Holders' Qualifier'' ''(Second round)''
* – ''Eastern European Qualifier'' ''(First round)''
* – ''Superleague Germany'' ''(Second round)''
* – ''PDC Nordic & Baltic'' ''(First round)''
* – ''CDC Continental Cup'' ''(First round)''
* – ''UK Tour Card Holders' Qualifier'' ''(Second round)''
* – ''PDC Asia Hong Kong Qualifier'' ''(Second round)''
* – ''PDC China Qualifier'' ''(First round)''
* – ''DPA Pro Tour'' ''(First round)''
* – ''PDC Development Tour'' ''(First round)''
* – ''South American Representative''
''(Second round)''
* – ''DPNZ Order of Merit''
''(First round)''
* – ''Rest of World Tour Card Holder's Qualifier'' ''(First round)''
* – ''PDC Asia Japan Qualifier'' ''(First round)''
* – ''UK Tour Card Holders' Qualifier'' ''(First round)''
* – ''PDC Asia China Qualifier'' ''(First round)''
* – ''Rest of World Tour Card Holder's Qualifier'' ''(First round)''
;Notes
Background
Michael van Gerwen
Michael van Gerwen (; born 25 April 1989) is a Dutch professional darts player. He is currently ranked number 3 in the world, having been number 1 from 2014 to 2021. He is also a three-time PDC World Champion, having won the title in 2014, 2 ...
, the runner-up in the
2020 PDC World Darts Championship and winner of the
2014
File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
,
2017
File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
and
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
championships, was top of the two-year
PDC Order of Merit The PDC Order of Merit is a world ranking system used by one of the darts organisations, the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). Following the 2007 PDC World Darts Championship it superseded a world ranking system based on points being awarded fo ...
and number one seed going into the tournament, having won the
UK Open
The Cazoo UK Open is a ranking major darts tournament held annually at the Butlins Minehead Resort by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) in England. Often referred to as the "FA Cup of darts", the UK Open replicates the abolition of seedin ...
and
Players Championship Finals
The Players Championship Finals is a darts tournament organised by the Professional Darts Corporation. The tournament originally featured the top 32 players from the Players Championship Order of Merit, a separate ranking system that only takes int ...
titles in 2020. The reigning champion from 2020
Peter Wright was second seed, having additionally won the
2020 European Championship
The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2020) or simply Euro 2020, was the 16th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe ...
; and
2020 World Grand Prix champion
Gerwyn Price
Gerwyn Stephen Price (born 7 March 1985) is a Welsh professional darts player and former professional rugby union and rugby league player. Nicknamed "The Iceman", he competes in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC), where he is cu ...
was the third seed. As well as Van Gerwen and Wright, three other previous PDC world champions qualified as seeds: two-time champions
Gary Anderson (13th seed) and
Adrian Lewis
Adrian Lewis (born 21 January 1985) is an English professional darts player currently playing in the PDC. He is a two-time PDC World Darts Champion, winning in 2011 and 2012. He is nicknamed Jackpot, as he won a jackpot gambling in Las Vegas ...
(21st seed), and
2018 champion Rob Cross (fifth seed). Two champions of the
BDO World Darts Championship
The WDF World Darts Championship is a world championship competition in darts, organised by the World Darts Federation. It would previously organised by the British Darts Organisation (BDO), who held it 43 times from 1978 to 2020.
The champio ...
qualified as seeds: three-time BDO champion and
2020 Premier League Darts
The 2020 Unibet Premier League Darts was a darts tournament organised by the Professional Darts Corporation – the sixteenth edition of the tournament. The event began on Thursday 6 February at the P&J Live in Aberdeen and ended with the Play-offs ...
winner
Glen Durrant
Glen Durrant (born 24 November 1970), nicknamed "Duzza", is an English former professional darts player who played in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He previously won the BDO World Darts Championship three times consecutively fr ...
(12th seed) and
2014 BDO champion Stephen Bunting
Stephen Bunting (born 9 April 1985) is an English professional darts player who competes in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). Nicknamed The Bullet, Bunting won the 2014 BDO World Darts Championship and is a twice former Worl ...
(26th seed).
The top seeds below Van Gerwen, Wright and Price were 2019 World finalist
Michael Smith, Rob Cross,
2019 UK Open champion
Nathan Aspinall
Nathan Aspinall (born 15 July 1991) is an English professional darts player currently playing in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He won the 2019 UK Open with a 170 checkout in the final leg against former World Champion Rob Cross.
...
,
2020 Grand Slam and
European Championship finalist
James Wade
James Martin Wade (born 6 April 1983) is an English professional darts player, currently playing in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). He became the youngest player to win a major PDC title, when he won the 2007 World Matchplay at the ...
,
2019 World Grand Prix
The 2019 Coral World Grand Prix was a professional snooker tournament that took place from 4 to 10 February 2019 at The Centaur, Cheltenham Racecourse in Cheltenham, England. It was the twelfth ranking event of the 2018/2019 season and a part ...
finalist
Dave Chisnall
Dave Chisnall (born 12 September 1980) is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He began his career in the British Darts Organisation (BDO) and was the runner-up in their World Champions ...
, and
2020 World Matchplay
The 2020 Betfred World Matchplay was the 27th annual staging of the World Matchplay, organised by the Professional Darts Corporation. The tournament took place, behind closed doors, at the Marshall Arena, Milton Keynes, from 18 to 26 July 2020.
...
winner
Dimitri Van den Bergh
Dimitri Van den Bergh (born 8 July 1994) is a Belgian professional darts player who currently competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He is a two-time World Youth Champion and the 2020 World Matchplay champion, after beating Gar ...
.
2020 Grand Slam of Darts
The 2020 BoyleSports Grand Slam of Darts was the fourteenth staging of the Grand Slam of Darts, organised by the Professional Darts Corporation. The event took place, behind closed doors, from 16 to 24 November 2020 at the Ricoh Arena, Coventry. ...
winner
José de Sousa
José Augusto Oliveira de Sousa (born 12 February 1974) is a Portuguese professional darts player. He is based in Tarragona and represented Spain at the 2011 WDF World Cup, but played for the Portuguese team afterwards at the PDC. He won his ...
was seeded 14th.
Damon Heta
Damon Heta (born 10 August 1987) is an Australian professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He won the Brisbane Darts Masters in 2019 and also, in pair with Simon Whitlock, World Cup of Darts in 2022. H ...
, in his first full year as a full PDC tour card holder, was the highest-ranked non-seed on the
2020 PDC Pro Tour
The 2020 PDC Pro Tour was a series of non-televised darts tournaments organised by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). Players Championships and European Tour events are the events that make up the Pro Tour. There were 27 PDC Pro Tour events ...
Order of Merit. Two-time BDO World Champion
Scott Waites qualified for the PDC World Championship for the first time, and was one of two former BDO Champions to qualify through the Pro Tour, alongside
Steve Beaton
Steve Beaton (born 5 April 1964) is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He won the BDO World Darts Championship in 1996 and is a former World No. 1.
Background
Beaton was born in Co ...
, the
1996 BDO champion, competing in a record-breaking 30th consecutive World Championship.
As well as Waites, six other players from the Pro Tour made their PDC Championship debuts;
Mike De Decker
Mike De Decker (born 15 December 1995) is a professional Belgian darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events.
Career
He won two PDC Development Tour events in 2015, followed by another one in 2016. He also won a PDC ...
,
Martijn Kleermaker,
Maik Kuivenhoven
Maik Kuivenhoven (born 25 September 1988) is a Dutch professional darts player currently playing in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events.
Career
In 2018, he qualified for his first PDC European Tour event, when he won one of the eight W ...
,
Jason Lowe,
Ryan Murray
Ryan James Murray (born September 27, 1993) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Murray was drafted second overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. ...
and
Derk Telnekes.
Other players to qualify via the Pro Tour included
2020 World Grand Prix finalist
Dirk van Duijvenbode
Dirk van Duijvenbode (born 30 June 1992) is a Dutch professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He is known for his energetic walk-on, combined with hardstyle music. More recently, he has become known for ...
and
2012 PDC World Championship runner-up
Andy Hamilton.
The international qualifiers were heavily impacted by the worldwide
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
, with a number of qualification tournaments being cancelled. The North American Darts Championship was cancelled, with the place being given to
Danny Lauby, the winner of the 2019 CDC Continental Cup. The cancellation of the Oceanic Masters resulted in a second place being given on the Dartplayers Australia tour; and the cancellation of the New Zealand championship saw the place instead being given to the top player on the Dartplayers New Zealand tour,
Haupai Puha. The qualifiers for India and South America were both cancelled, with the Indian place going to the Indian Darts Federation number one Amit Gilitwala, and the South American place being given to
Diogo Portela
Diogo Portela (born 12 June 1988) is a Brazilian professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) and World Darts Federation (WDF) events.
Career
Originally from Rio de Janeiro, Portela first came into prominence in ...
, who had won the South American qualifier the three previous years it had been held.
The PDC Asia Tour was fully cancelled, with the four places being awarded to the winners of one-off qualification events in
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
,
Hong Kong,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
, and the
Philippines. The Tom Kirby Irish Matchplay as well as qualifiers for Southern Europe, Western Europe, and Central Europe were not held in 2020; with these places being given to the final Pro Tour holders qualifier. One further change saw the two qualification events for female players being replaced with the new, four-event long, PDC Women's Series, with the top two players over those events – four-times
BDO Women's World Champion Lisa Ashton and
Deta Hedman – qualifying for the World Championship.
The final six places – four from uncompleted qualifiers and two as planned – were given to the winners of an event for Tour Card holders held at the conclusion of the PDC Series. Four places were reserved for players from the UK and Ireland and two from the rest of the world; a change from previous years where the places were unassigned.
The six players to get through the qualifier included
Jamie Lewis, a former World Championship semi-finalist.
Thirteen players from international qualifiers made their PDC World Championship debuts;
Bradley Brooks
Bradley Brooks (born 20 February 2000) is an English professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation events. He won the 2020 PDC World Youth Championship.
Career
In 2017, Brooks won the Junior Darts Corporation European ...
,
Cameron Carolissen
Cameron Carolissen (born 16 January 1996) is a South African professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He qualified for the 2021 PDC World Darts Championship via an International Qualifier.
Career
20 ...
,
David Evans David, Dave, or Dai Evans may refer to:
Academics
* Sir David Emrys Evans (1891–1966), Welsh classicist and university principal
* David Evans (microbiologist) (1909–1984), British microbiologist
* David Stanley Evans (1916–2004), British a ...
,
Edward Foulkes, Amit Gilitwala,
Dmitriy Gorbunov
Dmitriy Gorbunov (russian: link=no, Дмитрий Горбунов; born 16 September 1977 in Novouralsk) is a Russian professional darts player who played in Professional Darts Corporation tournaments.
Darts career In Russia
In March 2015, Go ...
,
Deta Hedman,
Nick Kenny,
Danny Lauby,
Haupai Puha, Toru Suzuki, Di Zhuang and
Niels Zonneveld
Niels Zonneveld (born 22 July 1998) is a Dutch professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events.
He attended European Q-School in 2019, where he won his Tour Card on Day 1, beating Christian Gödl 5–1 in the ...
.
Martijn Kleermaker withdrew from the tournament after testing positive for
COVID-19 on 20 December. As the first alternate
Josh Payne
Joshua James Payne (born 25 November 1990) is an English footballer who plays as a midfielder. He has previously played for West Ham United, Cheltenham Town, Colchester United, Wycombe Wanderers, Doncaster Rovers, Oxford United, Aldershot Town ...
had been in close contact with someone who had also received a positive test, Kleermaker's first round opponent
Cameron Carolissen
Cameron Carolissen (born 16 January 1996) is a South African professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He qualified for the 2021 PDC World Darts Championship via an International Qualifier.
Career
20 ...
received a bye.
Summary
UK government regulations following the
COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom
The COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom is a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In the United Kingdom, it has resulted in confir ...
allowed Tier 2 areas, including London, to hold sporting events with up to 1,000 spectators indoors. The Professional Darts Corporation announced that the World Championship would be the first PDC event in the United Kingdom to allow fans, since the
UK Open
The Cazoo UK Open is a ranking major darts tournament held annually at the Butlins Minehead Resort by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) in England. Often referred to as the "FA Cup of darts", the UK Open replicates the abolition of seedin ...
in March 2020. Fans attending the event were not allowed to wear
fancy dress
A costume party (American English) or fancy dress party (other varieties of English) is a type of party, common in contemporary Western culture, in which many of the guests are dressed in costume, usually depicting a fictional or stock chara ...
and 'football style' chanting was prohibited. With London subsequently moving to Tier 3 on 16 December, it meant that the tournament was held
behind closed doors for all sessions barring the opening night.
The top quarter of the draw saw number one seed
Michael van Gerwen
Michael van Gerwen (; born 25 April 1989) is a Dutch professional darts player. He is currently ranked number 3 in the world, having been number 1 from 2014 to 2021. He is also a three-time PDC World Champion, having won the title in 2014, 2 ...
defeat
Ryan Murray
Ryan James Murray (born September 27, 1993) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Murray was drafted second overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. ...
in the second round, before a 4–0 win over
Ricky Evans qualified him for the fourth round.
In that round, Van Gerwen came from 3–1 down and survived two darts at the
bullseye
Bullseye or Bull's Eye may refer to:
Symbols
* ◎ (Unicode U+25CE BULLSEYE), in the Geometric Shapes Unicode block
* (Unicode U+0298 LATIN LETTER BILABIAL CLICK), the phonetic symbol for bilabial click
Animals and plants
* Bull's Eye, ''Euryo ...
from
Joe Cullen to win in a
sudden death
Sudden Death or Sudden death may refer to:
Medical
* Cardiac arrest, also known as sudden cardiac death, natural death from cardiac causes
* Sudden cardiac death of athletes
* Sudden infant death syndrome
* Sudden unexpected death in epilepsy
* ...
last leg and reach the quarter-final for the fifth consecutive year and the eighth time overall.
Number eight seed
Dave Chisnall
Dave Chisnall (born 12 September 1980) is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He began his career in the British Darts Organisation (BDO) and was the runner-up in their World Champions ...
reached his third PDC World Championship quarter-final after wins over
Keegan Brown,
Danny Noppert and
Dimitri Van den Bergh
Dimitri Van den Bergh (born 8 July 1994) is a Belgian professional darts player who currently competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He is a two-time World Youth Champion and the 2020 World Matchplay champion, after beating Gar ...
.
In the quarter-final, Chisnall stunned Michael van Gerwen with a 5–0
whitewash win over the world number one to reach the first PDC World Championship semi-final of his career. This defeat was van Gerwen's first
whitewash loss (without winning a set) since 2009, when he lost to
Phil Taylor.
The two highest seeds in the second quarter were both eliminated early, with fourth seed
Michael Smith losing 3–1 to debutant
Jason Lowe and fifth seed
Rob Cross losing in a sudden death last leg to
Dirk van Duijvenbode
Dirk van Duijvenbode (born 30 June 1992) is a Dutch professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He is known for his energetic walk-on, combined with hardstyle music. More recently, he has become known for ...
.
Former world champion
Adrian Lewis
Adrian Lewis (born 21 January 1985) is an English professional darts player currently playing in the PDC. He is a two-time PDC World Darts Champion, winning in 2011 and 2012. He is nicknamed Jackpot, as he won a jackpot gambling in Las Vegas ...
also exited in the second round, losing to American
Danny Baggish
Daniel "Danny" Baggish (born 19 August 1983) is a Guamanian–born American professional darts player. He had a PDC tour card from 2021 to 2022, after being the only American player to win one at Q-School in 2021. He is a sponsored by Target ...
3–1.
Two time champion
Gary Anderson beat
Madars Razma in the second round
before beating
Mensur Suljović 4–3 in a controversial game, with Anderson accusing his opponent of
gamesmanship.
Anderson then
whitewashed Lowe's conqueror
Devon Petersen
Devon Petersen (born 4 June 1986) is a South African professional darts player and a pundit for Sky Sports. He has qualified for the PDC World Championship on seven occasions with his best result coming in 2014, 2019 and 2021 when he reached ...
to reach the eighth PDC World Championship quarterfinal of his career.
Van Duijvenbode followed up his win over Cross with a 4–0 win over
Adam Hunt and a second last-leg victory, this time over
Glen Durrant
Glen Durrant (born 24 November 1970), nicknamed "Duzza", is an English former professional darts player who played in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He previously won the BDO World Darts Championship three times consecutively fr ...
, to reach his first PDC World Championship quarter-final.
Van Duijvenbode won the first set against Anderson in the quarter-final, but Anderson turned the game around including a run of ten legs in a row to win the match 5–1.
Peter Wright opened his title defence with a 3–1 win over
Steve West, appearing on stage dressed as
The Grinch. Wright's reign was ended in the next round, after
Gabriel Clemens won a last leg decider over him.
Krzysztof Ratajski made it past
Ryan Joyce and
Simon Whitlock without dropping a set, before knocking out Clemens with a last leg victory of his own, with both players missing multiple darts to win before Ratajski finally hit double one to take the win and become the first
Polish player to make a PDC World Championship quarter-final.
Seventh seed
James Wade
James Martin Wade (born 6 April 1983) is an English professional darts player, currently playing in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). He became the youngest player to win a major PDC title, when he won the 2007 World Matchplay at the ...
was eliminated in the third round by
Stephen Bunting
Stephen Bunting (born 9 April 1985) is an English professional darts player who competes in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). Nicknamed The Bullet, Bunting won the 2014 BDO World Darts Championship and is a twice former Worl ...
, despite hitting the first perfect
Nine-dart finish
A nine-dart finish, also known as a nine-darter, is a perfect leg or single game in the sport of darts. The object of the game is to score a set number of points, most commonly 501; in order to win, a player must reach the target total exactly an ...
at the World Championship since Gary Anderson at the
2016 PDC World Darts Championship
The 2016 William Hill World Darts Championship was the 23rd World Championship organised by the Professional Darts Corporation since it separated from the British Darts Organisation. The event was held at the Alexandra Palace, London, between 17 ...
.
Bunting overcame
Ryan Searle in the fourth round to qualify for the quarter-finals for the second time.
In the quarter-final; Bunting took the first three sets and led 4–1 after the fifth. Ratajski closed the gap to 4–3 over the next two sets but Bunting broke throw in the eighth set to complete the win and qualify for his first PDC World Championship semi-final.
In the fourth quarter, third seed
Gerwyn Price
Gerwyn Stephen Price (born 7 March 1985) is a Welsh professional darts player and former professional rugby union and rugby league player. Nicknamed "The Iceman", he competes in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC), where he is cu ...
came thorough a last set decider against fellow Welshman
Jamie Lewis and a sudden death last leg decider against 30th seed
Brendan Dolan to reach the fourth round, where he took a 4–1 win over
Mervyn King to reach the quarter-final for the second consecutive year.
He was joined in the quarter-final by
Daryl Gurney, who reached that stage for the second time after wins over
William O'Connor,
Chris Dobey, and
Vincent van der Voort.
In the quarter-final, Price twice led by two sets at 2–0 & 4–2; and on both occasions Gurney won the next two sets to level. The final set went to a final leg, with Price eventually hitting the double 20 to win and reach a second consecutive semi-final.
The first semi-final played was between Price and Bunting. Price won the first set and took a 2–0 lead in the second before Bunting fought back to take the second set and the next two. Price took the fifth and sixth sets to level before Bunting again fought back from 2–0 down in a set to lead after the seventh set. Price levelled the match by winning the eighth set and won the last two sets by 3–0 and 3–1 to become the first Welsh player to reach a PDC World Championship final. The thirteen 100+ finishes thrown by the two players was a record combined count for a PDC World Championship match.
In the second semi-final, Anderson and Chisnall shared the first two sets, before Anderson claimed the next two to take a 3–1 lead. Chisnall broke Anderson's throw to take the fifth set, but Anderson immediately broke back and won the sixth. Again, Chisnall won the seventh set but Anderson restored the two set advantage with an eighth set victory. Anderson won all three legs in the ninth set to secure a 6–3 win, qualifying the two-time World Champion for his fifth PDC World Championship final.
The final between Anderson and Price was held on 3 January 2021. Anderson threw first in the first set and won the first two legs, but missed four darts for a 3–0 set win, and Price came back to take the set 3–2. Anderson broke back with a 3–1 win in the second set. Price broke again in the third set despite a "
big fish" 170 finish from Anderson, and held his throw in the fourth set to take a 3–1 advantage. Price again broke Anderson's throw in the fifth set, and won the sixth 3–0. Price took a two leg lead in the seventh set, but Anderson fought back to take only his second set of the match. Price regained the four-set advantage by winning the eighth set to go one away from winning the title. Price missed nine darts for the championship in the ninth set, which Anderson won. In the tenth set, Price fought back from 2–0 to eventually take the set and the championship, winning the title on double five.
Price's first World Championship additionally saw him take the number one spot on the
PDC Order of Merit The PDC Order of Merit is a world ranking system used by one of the darts organisations, the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). Following the 2007 PDC World Darts Championship it superseded a world ranking system based on points being awarded fo ...
away from
Michael van Gerwen
Michael van Gerwen (; born 25 April 1989) is a Dutch professional darts player. He is currently ranked number 3 in the world, having been number 1 from 2014 to 2021. He is also a three-time PDC World Champion, having won the title in 2014, 2 ...
, the Dutchman having held the title for seven years since winning the
2014 PDC World Darts Championship
The 2014 Ladbrokes World Darts Championship was the 21st World Championship organised by the Professional Darts Corporation since it separated from the British Darts Organisation. The event took place at the Alexandra Palace, London between 13 De ...
.
Schedule
Draw
The draw took place on 3 December 2020, live on
Sky Sports News.
Final
Finals
Top half
Section 1
Section 2
Bottom half
Section 3
Section 4
Statistics
Top averages
This table shows the highest averages achieved by players throughout the tournament.
Representation
This table shows the number of players by country in the 2021 PDC World Championship. A total of 29 nationalities were represented, surpassing the record of the
2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
and
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
editions by one.
Broadcasting rights
Television
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:PDC World Darts Championship 2021
2021
File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...
World Championship
World Championship
2020 in British sport
2021 in British sport
2020 sports events in London
2021 sports events in London
International sports competitions in London
Alexandra Palace
December 2020 sports events in the United Kingdom
January 2021 sports events in the United Kingdom