Darts icon launches scathing review of Engand's 'astonishing' loss to Germany: 'They buckled!'
Wayne Mardle has launched a scathing review after England's World Cup of Darts defence came to a stunning end in Frankfurt.Luke Humphries and Luke Littler fell 8-4 to Germany in their first match, marking an end to Britain's hopes for glory in the competition.The world's top two players, both newly honoured with MBEs in the King's Birthday Honours on Saturday, were comprehensively outplayed by the German side consisting of Martin Schindler and Ricardo Pietreczko.The tournament favourites struggled throughout at the Eissporthalle, missing crucial doubles whilst their German opponents capitalised.Backed by a partisan home crowd that heavily booed the English duo onto the stage, Schindler and Pietreczko delivered one of the tournament's greatest upsets.Ricardo Pietreczko and Martin Schindler of Germany proved too much for EnglandGettyEngland's hopes of a record-extending sixth World Cup crown were dashed as pressure took hold of the pair.The match turned decisively in Germany's favour as Littler missed three darts at a double in the fifth leg, allowing Pietreczko to win it with a 106 outshot.Further missed opportunities followed, with Humphries hitting 25 rather than bull going for 122, as Germany surged to a 5-2 interval lead.Pietreczko took out 101 after the resumption to extend their advantage to 7-2.JUST IN: Inter Milan star to MISS Club World Cup after being left stranded in Iran following Isreali strikesEngland converted just four doubles from 11 chances, ultimately proving detrimental to their title defence.Mardle offered a stark assessment of England's collapse, telling Sky Sports' Emma Paton: "It was astonishing. It was outstanding."And what was amazing was the way that Martin and Ricardo went about their business from leg one to the very end."They never excelled at any moment with, like, an 11 or 12 darter against the throw. But when they had their chances, they took them. They never dropped off for a millisecond."The former world championship semi-finalist highlighted how pressure affected the English duo."Luke and Luke, no doubt, were feeling the stresses and strains of being massive favourites," he said.READ MORE: Lionel Messi's Inter Miami match branded 'snooze fest' as revamped Club World Cup kicks off"The pressure got to them at some point, Luke and Luke, and they buckled. Their opponents didn't, and full credit to Martin and Ricardo there."World No1 Humphries had previously rebuffed any notion that the pressure could impact the pair, saying: "Luke and I have been the favourites in every tournament we've played in this year and we still manage to win them."Unfortunately, England's performance at the oche on Saturday told otherwise.Mardle emphasised the unique challenges of the format: "Playing for your country is different than playing for yourself. Playing with a teammate is different than playing just by yourself."Schindler, who had insisted beforehand that the English duo were "beatable", was vindicated in his confidence."I was right because we believed in ourselves," he told Sky Sports. "We have been putting in a solid performance, and obviously the double 16s from Ricardo just went in, so we are very happy to go through."LATEST SPORTS NEWS:Wayne Mardle said Luke Humphries and Luke Littler 'buckled' under the pressureGettyThe world number 18 praised his 28th-ranked partner: "We believed in ourselves and we put in a solid performance, and the double 16s that Ricardo threw were so important."German darts is in good shape right now and we will continue to push forward."On Saturday, Wales' two-time winners Gerwyn Price and Jonny Clayton cruised into the semi-final with an 8-4 victory over Hong Kong.The Welsh pair, who claimed the crown in 2020 and 2023, then beat the Netherlands, who had dropped just two legs throughout the entire tournament prior to their meeting, to secure their place in the final.One major scalp from the Netherlands, who are without world No3 Michael van Gerwen, is Gary Anderson and Peter Wright's Scotland, who were emphatically beaten 8-0 in just 15 minutes.The third-seeded team registered an average of less than 80.It was Northern Ireland, though, who took home the title on the night.
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