He is Raymond van Barneveld

Raymond van Barneveld is ready to regain the World Championship – 10 years after that pulsating final against great rival Phil Taylor.

According to the man from Den Haag, he is in his best form since that famous night on the Circus Tavern oche. The 49-year-old is fitter, healthier, and raring to take on all comers as he pursues the title which would give him greatest satisfaction.

Nothing will come easy to Barney, though, as the 12th seed opens his campaign against Robbie ‘Kong’ Green before a potential second-round meeting with Alan ‘Chuck’ Norris. And life is unlikely to get any easier thereafter with Adrian Lewis, Taylor, Michael van Gerwen and back-to-back winner Gary Anderson all in line for the five-time winner.

A draw like that would give most players nightmares, but not Van Barneveld, who heads to north London’s Alexandra Palace brimming with confidence and ideas of taking the Sid Waddell trophy back to the Netherlands.

“I’m playing really good darts and I’m feeling confident for the first time in a couple of years,” Van Barneveld told Sky Sports in an exclusive interview.

“I’ll never forget my first year in the PDC and then winning the World Championship was amazing, but after that, it never happened, so maybe this year.

“The draw I have is immense – it’s very strong. It’s going to be tough, but I have to play it one game at a time. If you look at the draw it looks almost impossible, but it’s not. You can do it, but you have to play your A-game.”

Barney feels he is very much back in tip-top condition, and regularly averaging over 100 during practice sessions.

“If you look at the averages, I’m playing far better than I used to do, but the standard from all the other players is a …

continue reading in source www.skysports.com