🔗 Share this article

In a performance that rewrote the history books, debutant Justin Hood achieved an unprecedented feat of 11 consecutive doubles, powering his way to a dominant 4-0 victory over Josh Rock in the third round of the elite World Darts Championship.

A Fairytale Start on the Grandest Arena

The 32-year-old, competing in his maiden season on the premier professional circuit, continued his remarkable tournament run. His perfect doubling streak finally concluded when he had a chance to seal the match at 2-0 up in the fourth set. Undaunted, he regrouped to clinCH the victory with a superb 119 checkout in the very next leg.

“It’s not a fairytale – I know what I can do and it’s nice to prove it up there,” Hood remarked in his post-match interview. “The only time I felt a bit of nerves was throwing the leg before the last. I’m unaccustomed to this. Usually, I get negative comments. This is mad.”

Laying Down a Marker with Blistering Start

Hood sent an early message about his intentions by winning the opening set with an 11-dart break. This left the favored Rock, the tournament's number 11, powerless but watch in awe as Hood stormed to victory, registering a formidable 101 average and firing in 10 maximum 180s.

This historic win ensures the newcomer a career-best payday of at least £100,000 and brings him closer to his stated ambition of opening a Chinese restaurant.

Clayton Climbs Amid Tough Battle

In other last-16 action, Jonny Clayton solidified his rise to the number four spot in the global rankings after engineering a fightback from a set down to defeat Andreas Harrysson 4-2.

The Swedish contender was made to regret for failing to capitalize on key opportunities, having led a 2-1 advantage and subsequently wasting four darts to regain a one-set lead at 3-2.

“A number of things on my mind and moving to world No. 4 was one of them,” confessed Clayton. “Whenever I looked up, Andreas was finding his doubles. It was tough; I didn’t play my top darts and had a lot of loose throws, but that’s what the occasion does to you.”

Ratajski Progresses into Last Eight

Joining them in the next round is Krzysztof Ratajski, who pulled away in the closing phases to secure a 4-2 win over Luke Woodhouse, booking his place in the elite last eight of the championship.