Rob Cross heaped all the praise on a 22-year-old Dutch dart player who made his World Matchplay debut last Sunday.
Cross has spent seven years on the PDC tour and believes this prodigy has a lot of potential to reach the top of the darting summit.
The 33-year-old survived six match darts in his first-round World Matchplay encounter with Dutch star Gian van Veen, winning in 13-12 in a last-leg decider.
Cross got a foothold in the match to establish an 8-4 advantage, but van Veen reeled off five consecutive legs to lead 9-8 and put himself one leg away from a stunning comeback.
‘Voltage’ broke the van Veen throw, which forced the encounter to be won by two clear legs, before overcoming a 12-11 deficit to win in the all-important final two legs.
Cross will accompany his close friend Gerwyn Price in the second round as they search for World Matchplay glory.
Rob Cross complimented Gian Van Veen’s qualities on and off the oche
The 2019 World Matchplay champion was magnanimous with his words about his opponent’s performance in his post-match interview with Online Darts on YouTube.
The young Dutchman debuted at the iconic Winter Gardens stage and took a former winner to the deciding leg.
“I didn’t expect him to hit it I’m not going to lie,” Cross admitted when discussing van Veen’s 170 checkout.
“That’s just class – I think the boy can hold his head up high. He played great. [At] 8-4 [up] and all, them flurry of legs with the bullseyes, credit to him and he probably [would] get a bit of stick for missing match darts.
“He doesn’t deserve that; he’s a young boy who deserves to progress and look, he’s one of the top players. When he’s on it, he’s fantastic, and I enjoy it, but most of all, what a nice person, I will say that.
“He’s fantastic, he really is and he has such a bright future ahead of him.”
Rob Cross rebrand for World Matchplay
For this year’s World Matchplay, Cross completely rebranded his darting personnel with a new tailor-made shirt from his sponsor, Target, and a brand new walk-on song to boot.
The former world champion decided to change ‘Hot Hot Hot’ by Arrow for ‘I Don’t Wanna Wait’ by David Guetta and OneRepublic.
These changes, combined with his new philosophy and outlook towards the game, have allowed him to play more freely.
“I should be doing all the finer things in life because this job pays a lot of money. I am in a good position in my life and should be enjoying some more family time doing the right things, coming out and playing with freedom,” he said.
“There aren’t many players in the world I believe who have got my bottle in the game and sometimes just taking that leap of faith. [By] just saying, ‘Do you know I’m gonna pull through anyway?’ and not letting it dictate to me, just me controlling it.
“I have never done that in seven years, and I think having that change, and you watch over the last 12-14 weeks that it’s gone well for me. I still believe it’s going to get better because I haven’t hit my best yet.”