At first, Martin Schindler could not be proud of it. The German left the huge darts stage in London's Alexandra Palace with a shattered expression. Shortly after the World Cup, Schindler was able to laugh again in an interview.

"It's difficult to describe. I had it in my head right away. Somehow the win was within reach, but somehow not," said the 26-year-old after the thrilling 3-4 defeat against English World Cup finalist Michael Smith. Schindler was leading 3:1 and was about to win. "It is what it is," commented the German on DAZN. It is like it is.

Despite the disappointment, Schindler's record at the World Cup, who was previously without a win at the world's biggest tournament, was positive. "I had great moments. My work has borne a lot of fruit. There are many more positives than negatives," said Schindler, who said he had "a great year" in 2022. He is now exactly at the level where he wants to be. This could actually be seen in the darts thriller against the stumbling world-class player Smith. "I have to keep going right there."

"Bully Boy" Smith now meets Joe Cullen

It had previously gone back and forth between "The Wall" Schindler and "Bully Boy" Smith for almost an hour. "It wasn't for people with high blood pressure. Unfortunately, that's how darts are," commented Werner von Moltke, the head of the PDC Europe. As for Florian Hempel, who lost 2:3 against the English world-class man Luke Humphries, the tournament also came to an extremely annoying end for Schindler.

"It's extremely bitter. The bully boy had given up in between. It was a huge, huge opportunity," said darts professional Max Hopp at Sport1. Smith now faces compatriot Joe Cullen.

The last German representative is Gabriel Clemens, who will face Scottish outsider Alan Soutar in the round of 16. In the past few days, more and more German fans have been out and about in Alexandra Palace.