Last World Championship appearance for the Singapore Slinger?
Will the Ally Pally bid farewell to a darts legend on Friday? Paul Lim is a household name to every fan around the world and the Singapore Slinger is making his 26th World Championship appearance. At 67 years of age, it stands to reason that his career will soon come to an end and possibly his last appearance on the world’s biggest stage is imminent. In round one the Englishman Joe Murnan will play his third appearance in the PDC World Championship
The match opens the Evening Session on Friday evening and starts at 20:00 German time. The local hero is rated as favourite by the best bookmakers. Between Joe Murnan and Paul Lim, the odds on the Brit’s side are 1.50, while there is a 2.75 on offer for Lim.
Despite the Englishman’s home advantage, the crowd is expected to side with the old-timer and carry him to another surprise like the one he pulled off against Luke Humphries last year. It won’t be easy, though, and Friday will show whether the oldest player in the field will be allowed to make a second appearance at the oche.
Joe Murnan – Statistics & current form
Joe Murnan is a regular on the PDC circuit since 2012. His biggest success came in May 2015 when he won a Players Championship tournament in Crawley. Beside he reached the last 16 of the World Matchplay and by now played his third World Championship. He already celebrated a win at the World Championship when he managed to turn the match against the “Hammer” Andy Hamilton in 2016.
Second win in third World Cup appearance?
After a results crisis, he once again secured a Tour Card for the coming season in 2021 via Q-School. Two qualifications for the European Championship were the reason why he qualified via the Pro Tour for the PDC World Championship. Obviously it was a good idea to change his nickname this year. The name “Midnight” has brought the 38 year old quite a lot of luck so far and the right-hander is now aiming for the second World Championship win of his career.
He has earned his position as favourite against Paul Lim in round one through very consistent performances over the past months. However, the last appearance was a while ago and there have been no results to be found since the beginning of November.
New confidence after winning Tour Card
For this reason, it is also somewhat difficult to properly assess the Englishman’s current form and Friday night’s match also brings with it a certain surprise factor. Between Joe Murnan and Paul Lim, one can venture a prediction that an exciting match is on the cards, where the form of the day will have a big influence on the outcome.
Last matches of Joe Murnan:
Players Championship 30
11/04 2021 – Danny Noppert 6 – 2 Joe Murnan
11/04 2021 – Joe Murnan 6 – 5 Aaron Beeney
Players Championship 29
11/03 2021 – Danny Noppert 6 – 4 Joe Murnan
Players Championship 28
11/02 2021 – Ryan Meikle 6 – 4 Joe Murnan
Players Championship 27
10/22 2021 – Michael Smith 6 – 3 Joe Murnan
Paul Lim – Statistics & current form
Whole novels could be written about the career and life of Paul Lim. The 67-year-old is not one of the world’s absolute crowd favourites for nothing and will once again be celebrated by the public at his 26th World Cup appearance. Especially curious would be a possible third-round match against German youngster Fabian Schmutzler, who is 16 years old and could be a grandson of the man from Singapore.
Will Lim bring the Ally Pally to the boil once again?
Before that happens, the oldies would first have to get Joe Murnan out of the way. He qualified for the World Cup via a tournament in his home country in mid-November. So 40 years after his debut the Singapore Slinger is back in the big highlight of the year.
The darts legend, who managed the first perfect match at the World Championship in 1990 and thus entered the history books, of course brings a lot of experience with him, which can help on Friday. From a purely playing point of view, the results and averages have dwindled somewhat in recent years and from a sporting point of view, the underdog role on Friday is only logical. However, the fans, the momentum and the great fighting spirit of the darts old man should not be underestimated.
Spectators will be cheering on the Singapore Slinger
Between Joe Murnan and Paul Lim, a tip on the underdog can be successful if he plays himself into a similar frenzy as he did against Luke Humphries a year ago. Should that not be the case, fans could possibly see the Singapore Slinger’s last appearance at the Ally Pally.
Last matches of Paul Lim:
World Cup of Darts
09/11 2021 – Michael van Gerwen 4 – 0 Paul Lim
World Darts Championship
12/22 2020 – Dimitri van den Bergh 3 – 0 Paul Lim
12/18 2020 – Luke Humphries 2 – 3 Paul Lim
12/14 2019 – Luke Woodhouse 3 – 0 Paul Lim
World Cup of Darts
06/08 2019 – Paul Lim 3 – 4 Seigo Asada
Joe Murnan – Paul Lim Direct Comparison / H2H Record
The direct comparison is not helpful for a prediction in the Joe Murnan vs Paul Lim match. The two players have never met before in their careers and on debut they face each other directly on the biggest darts stage in the world
Joe Murnan – Paul Lim Tip
The 29 years younger Englishman Joe Murnan is rightly the favourite in the first round match against Paul Lim. The world number 94 has played a strong 2021 and rightly secured his Tour Card for the coming season. At the World Championship the 38-year-old wants to prove his skills and send 67-year-old Paul Lim into darts retirement.
From a purely sporting point of view this is also quite likely and between Joe Murnan and Paul Lim the odds on the side of the favourite are the best recommendation.
The Asian is almost exclusively on the road in his home country and his condition is therefore very difficult to assess. Unless he pulls off a big surprise like he did against “Cool Hand Luke” a year ago, the veteran will bow out of the tournament on Friday and despite all the sympathy for the man from Singapore, from a betting point of view a bet has to be placed in the Brit’s direction.
The most likely outcome is a 3:1 win for “Midnight” and with a set win Paul Lim could bid a dignified farewell to the darts stage at Alexandra Palace.
