Glen Durrant hopes to rediscover form at the World Matchplay

While Duzza recently had his best ever year as a professional darts player joining the PDC and winning the Premier League of Darts in his debut season, the 50-year-old has found form hard to come by in recent months. 

His title defence was cut short after losing every single Premier League game culminating in a 16 match losing streak. Not many top level darts players suffer a dip of that magnitude.

With the World Matchplay on the horizon, Middlesbrough born Durrant admits he's a world away from his best with a first round tie against Callan Rdyz to come on Sunday afternoon.

"It’s the toughest time by a country mile.

"When you talk about disappointment, the Martin Adams one was still my favourite game. Going from a pub to the semi-final of a Lakeside, as disappointing as it was, it was quite fantastic really and the experience then set me up for the next sort of five years.

Glen Durrant after winning the Lakeside Championship

"I think the biggest disappointment I’ve had in darts was losing to Scott Waites when I’d dominated for that year but this has just been on a different level. This has just been crazy.

"It’s as if I won the Premier League and, spiritually, you start thinking ‘right that’s it, you’ve had your turn, you’ve had your good times and let’s move on now’.

"The bubble hasn’t helped. That Premier League is probably going to haunt me now for a long long time because you’re getting beat 7-1, 7-0 against people you were beating and then you’ve got to go back into this hotel room without your family there and abiding by all the pandemic rulings that were set up in the bubbles.

"They were some really dark moments.

"Seeing my averages plummet as well. It’s not like a loss of form is down to being unlucky. Chris Dobey was averaging over 100 for a tournament and didn’t win a game. I’m averaging 20 less and I was at my best. It’s been difficult.

"When someone like Simon Whitlock is out of form, he’ll always talk positive. He’ll always say ‘it’s just a blip, I’ll be back’.

"I’ve always tried to answer questions with how I’m genuinely feeling and I’m trying to change that a little bit because sometimes your demeanour, when you’re going into a tournament, your head is down, your shoulders are down, you’re probably going to play poor.

"I used to have that aura of when I’d walk into a tournament, certainly in the BDO, but I don’t now. Very very difficult and there doesn’t seem to be much light at the end of the tunnel right now.

"I go for practice now and you just hope today's the day.

"Today’s the day I remember how I used to throw and the 180’s are flying in.

A tough 5 days but @dougan90 is a legend. Speaks beautifully via PM

We keep believing and move forward

Thank you @OfficialPDC for another Super Series

Blackpool next week. We keep practicing and following the process

— Glen Durrant (@Duzza180) July 9, 2021

"I’m going into the third biggest tournament in the world. The most favoured tournament for many people in the wonderful Winter Gardens and all them wonderful memories of beating Michael Van Gerwen, that was two years ago.

"What I would say to people is just enjoy the good times when it’s happening because when it’s not going so well, you don’t half find out a lot about yourself."

While Duzza is as honest and open about his poor performances, he loves the big stage. 

He's reached the semi final of the World Matchplay for the last two years. 

He's often thrived in his role as the underdog and pulled a rabbit out of the hat against some of the biggest names in darts. 

Now that he has cemented himself in darting history and become a household name, Duzza says he's determined to prove that his climb to the top wasn't a flash in the pan moment.

He's even used the help of a coach to help get to the root of his problems on the oche.

“I often self-reflect. You do look at yourself and think less than a decade ago I was in the North Ormesby workmans, working as a housing manager and only decided to travel in 2011.

“Everyone knew who I was in the late 90’s and around the Millennium but I didn’t travel so to go to my first real tournament at the Dutch Open in 2011 to what I achieved in 2021, that decade, I could have never have imagined when I went into my first BDO tournament.

“The only issue is I don’t have the default where I can go back to ‘how did I get through this before?’.

“The tension and anxiety that brings to your throw is fundamentally why I’m throwing different to how I used to be.

“When you’re happy and the games easy you don’t think, it’s just fluent.

Glen Durrant won the Premier League of Darts in his debut season in the PDC.

“I am a thinker and I am someone who often self-reflects. If you name something, I’ve tried it. Whether it’s been new darts, news stems, new flights, the way I stand, the way I practice, physio, losing a bit of weight, seeing a coach which was the latest one.

“I went to see Wayne Mardle last week. He recognised what the problem was but it’s nothing I didn’t know but it’s not instant. He thought it would take five to six hours to really get back to the way I used to throw but there’s just something in my throw right now which, as much as I know what the problem is, I can’t seem to rectify that.

“Whatever happens after the Matchplay, I’ve got a period of time where August is usually a quiet period for the darts where I can really work on my game and try and peak again ready for a very very busy end of the season.

“Because I’m defending a lot of money, a lot of points and if I don’t buck my ideas up quickly, you can soon fall out the top 16 and then it becomes really difficult when your qualifying for events."

Duzza takes on Callan Rydz in the first round of the World Matchplay on Sunday 18th July during the afternoon session from 1pm.