Raymond van Barneveld expressed uncertainty about his future following his early exit from the Ally Pally tournament. The Dutch player was defeated in straight sets by Swiss opponent Stefan Bellmont, marking his sixth consecutive failure to progress to the quarter-finals after winning the title in 2007. Van Barneveld, aged 58, acknowledged his disappointment and admitted to being at a loss regarding his next career move following a challenging year.
Reflecting on his performance, Van Barneveld conceded that Bellmont played exceptionally well and deserved the victory. Despite showing glimpses of good form, the Dutchman struggled to maintain consistency, attributing part of his difficulties to the difference between practice sessions and competitive matches. He highlighted the impact of Bellmont’s deliberate pace on disrupting his rhythm and affecting his accuracy in crucial moments.
Van Barneveld lamented his recent string of poor results, emphasizing the need for self-reflection and improvement. He expressed frustration over his inability to replicate practice success in actual games and vowed to address his shortcomings to bounce back stronger. The defeat resulted in Van Barneveld dropping down the PDC Order of Merit rankings, while Bellmont advanced to face Damon Heta in the next round.
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