White “still gutted” at agonising World Matchplay defeat
White was left to rue missed chances in Blackpool (credit:Lawrence Lustig/PDC)
Ian White admits he is “still gutted” at his Second Round tie break defeat to Stephen Bunting at the World Matchplay last month.
The world number ten looked to be cruising into the Quarter-Finals at the Winter Gardens as he led 9-4 but went on to miss five match darts as Bunting forced overtime before eventually snatching a 14-12 victory.
White’s failure to close out the win denied him a place in a first televised Quarter-Final for more than two years, and the Stoke star says he is still reeling after letting a golden opportunity slip from his grasp.
“I’m still not over it,” White told Live Darts. “It was just a killer for me.
“I know I’ve got to get over it but it was just so annoying.
“I’d let myself down my not finishing it off but fair play to Stephen, he came back and that’s what you need to keep doing in darts, keep battling back.
“I’m still gutted now.
“I’ve been playing well all year, so going in to the tournament I was on the first page of the betting odds and that’s never happened, so everyone must recognise what I’ve been doing in the last few months.
“I just thought that was my tournament, I really felt good.
“I thought that was my chance but it just didn’t happen.”
White, 48, has established himself as one of the most formidable floor performers in recent years and has notably thrived on the European Tour this season, winning the European Grand Prix and Dutch Masters, while also reaching the final of the German Open and Austrian Open.
He followed up his Matchplay disappointment with two strong runs on the ProTour in Hildesheim and says he is determined to push on and do more damage in the second half of the campaign.
“I’ve had another Semi-Final and a Quarter-Final since on the floor but I’m doing that quite regularly so I just need these TV tournaments,” added White.
“There’s four European Tours coming up and hopefully I can do well in them.
“I’ve won two already this year and if I can win two more, it’s like winning a major because it’s a hundred thousand pounds, so that’s my aim.
“If I can win another two of them then that’s really going to push me on.
“The second half of the year is where I usually fall down, so hopefully this year, if I can keep doing what I’ve done in the first half then I should be quite comfortably in the top ten.”
