James Wade featured in his 20th consecutive World Matchplay last night, where he progressed to the second round after a 10-3 win over Joe Cullen.
It wasn’t just a routine win either for Wade. “The Machine” registered his highest ever World Matchplay average with 104.44 and went 67% on checkouts for a dominant first round display.
A MACHINE MASTERCLASS!
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) July 19, 2025
James Wade completes a 10-3 thrashing of Joe Cullen!
On his 20th World Matchplay appearance, Wade hits his highest tournament average (104.44)!
📺 https://t.co/ZboV9dF4Ji#MatchplayDarts | R1 pic.twitter.com/8qBsedMUc3
Wade won the World Matchplay in 2007 and is a five-time runner-up, but hasn’t been to the final since 2015.
Last year was his best run in almost a decade when he made it to the semi-final and he followed that up with a quarter-final run at the Grand Prix and a runner-up place at this year’s UK Open.
Combined with some consistent runs on the ProTour, results have seen Wade now provisionally rise to fifth in the PDC Order of Merit.
Despite this, Wade believes that his ranking is irrelevant when it comes to invitational tournaments like the World Series of Darts.
He thinks the PDC would even “change the rules” if he finished fourth and earned an automatic qualification place in the 2026 Premier League of Darts…
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James Wade Believes PDC Don’t Want Him in Premier League of Darts
Following his emphatic win last night, James Wade attended his post-game press conference where the conversation turned to his improved ranking position.
The top four players earn automatic positions in the Premier League of Darts following the conclusion of the World Championship, however, Wade believes the PDC would change the rules if he were to earn the qualifying place.
He said:
“I think I’ve paid enough dues, I think I’ve done enough things and I think I’ve given enough of my life to the PDC that I would like to get those rewards [inclusion in invitational events], but I don’t think that would ever happen to me.
“I think if I was to get back into the top four, things would change with the qualification gaps. I just think it would change.
“I’m not what they need and I’m not probably what they want, but I want to be there, 100%.”
When asked why he thinks he’d be excluded, Wade clarified:
“I’m awkward, I’m an awkward character. I probably don’t say the right things at the right times and I’m probably not polite…
“I’m probably not great at saying the right things at the right time. If I was great at saying the right things at the right time I probably would have been in all the World Series the last 12 months.
“I don’t quite fit into that mold.”
Wade will face Wessel Nijman in the second round on Tuesday in what will be a tricky tie after Nijman beat Nathan Aspinall with a convincing performance last night.
Check out Wade’s interview in full below provided by Tungsten Tales:
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