Debutant Andreas Harrysson sensationally reaches the round of 16 at the Darts World Championship. The upcoming match against co-favorite Jonny Clayton could completely change his life.
Will a big dream come true? When debutant Andreas Harrysson faces Jonny Clayton in the round of 16 of the Darts World Championship on Tuesday afternoon (December 11 to January 3 LIVE on SPORT1 ), the 50-year-old Swede has a great chance to reach the top 64 of the world rankings for the first time and thus earn his Tour Card. It is the most important match of his life.
“Dirty Harry” qualified for the World Championship at Alexandra Palace for the first time in his career and was ranked 114th in the Order of Merit before the tournament. Thanks to victories against Ross Smith, Motomu Sakai, and Ricardo Pietreczko, Harrysson has already earned £60,000 and is now ranked 72nd in the live rankings.
Andreas Harrysson faces the most important match of his career at the Darts World Championship
Darts World Championship: Harrysson knocks out Pikachu
The situation before the round of 16 against the Welsh co-favorite (world number five) is clear: If Harrysson wins, he will have £117,750 in his ranking account, enter the top 64, and secure his Tour Card for 2026 and 2027. This would completely change his life.
“I wouldn’t have dreamed that I would get this far,” the Swede confessed at the press conference after his success against Pietreczko, adding: “This is the biggest win of my career so far.”
Harrysson gets closer to the Tour Card
When asked about getting the Tour Card by reaching the quarterfinals, he replied in his usual relaxed manner: “It’s an extra motivation for me, but if I don’t make it, I’ll just go to Q-School.”
At the same time, Harrysson confessed: “Although I believed in myself before the tournament, only in my dreams could I have imagined earning the Tour Card at the World Championship. But now it’s getting closer.”
World Championship hero unfazed
Against Clayton, he sees himself as an underdog and hopes to perform well, as in previous rounds. Then anything is possible for him, says the 50-year-old: “I have no pressure against Jonny at all; he is the clear favorite. Hopefully, I can put up a fight, and then we’ll see what happens.”
What’s particularly impressive about Harrysson is that he always remains calm – even though it’s his World Championship debut, and he’s on the biggest darts stage in the world at Ally Pally in front of around 3,000 cheering spectators. He lets nothing faze him, and his emotions rarely show during the match. Only briefly after his match darts could he never quite grasp on stage that he had won.
Darts World Championship: Will the fairy tale continue?
In an interview with SPORT1 , he expressed some surprise about it: “I feel great on stage. I should actually be nervous up there, but I’m not.”
This coolness is a significant reason why Harrysson is writing his personal darts fairy tale. And perhaps it’s not over yet on Tuesday. For that, he would “only” have to win the most important match of his career so far.