World number 33 and Belgian no.2 seed Kim Huybrechts has reportedly suffered a broken collarbone and dislocated shoulder as a result of an attack at a recent football cup final, putting his status in the World Cup and World Matchplay in great jeopardy.
‘The Hurricane’, who is a former PDC major finalist and a staple of the Pro Tour and major circuits, was attacked by ultras following on from the cup final between Union Saint-Gilloise and Antwerp, which was won 1-0 by USG.
The incident has all but officially confirmed that Huybrechts will miss the World Cup of Darts with his country, with Mike De Decker looking increasingly likely to partner Dimitri Van den Bergh as the Belgian duo for the event in Dortmund, Germany.
Read More: The Chaos Unfolding In Belgian Darts Right Now
Being outside of the world’s top 32 as well, Huybrechts is likely to also narrowly miss out on the World Matchplay, which is limited to the top 32 in the world, with there being little time for Huybrechts to be able to accumulate the prize money necessary to move up the world rankings.
The attack is just the latest event in what’s been an incredibly chaotic, rollercoaster period for the Belgian darts scene. Huybrechts was fined after allegedly physically threatening his aforementioned compatriots, even going so far as to say he would “destroy them”.
Kim Huybrechts got brutally attacked after the Cup final between his fav club Antwerp and Union. Got tackled and was kicked multiple times by some 'local youngsters'
— Vincent Van Genechten (@VVGenechten2) May 10, 2024
Shoulder broken and it's his good one... Out indefinitely. 😒
More @nieuwsbladsport âž¡ https://t.co/iCgD1WadH8 pic.twitter.com/xBWxTPrMjD
Alongside this, Belgian darts has only just started to see a return to form after a bad spell of performances from Huybrechts, Van den Bergh and co, with VDB winning the prestigious UK Open back in March after beating Luke Humphries in the final, and Andy Baetens winning the WDF World Championship at the tail end of 2023.
By Jaspar Shepherdson
(@jasparshepmedia on X/Twitter and Instagram)
Image Credit-Sven Mandel on Wikipedia
Add comment
Comments