James Wade crashes OUT of World Darts Championship as Jermaine Wattimena beats him 3-0 in second round - with four-time semi-finalist becoming first seeded star to exit

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James Wade has been dumped out of the second round of the World Darts Championship 3-0 by Jermaine Wattimena. 

The No 16 seed has reached the semi-finals of this tournament four times but was beaten soundly by the Dutchman at Alexandra Palace.

It means the 41-year-old, who had a bye through to this stage, has now exited in the second round for the third consecutive year. 

The Machine is still getting back to his best after a health scare in May 2022 when he was rushed to hospital after falling ill at the European Darts Open. He has won 11 PDC majors across a storied career. 

Wade got off to a good start against Wattimena by taking the first leg with a 13-darter but the match quickly unravelled. 

Wattimena took the next eight legs in a storming run to move two sets and a break up against the Englishman before he finally won a leg back.

No 16 seed James Wade became the first big-name casualty of the World Darts Championship

Jermaine Wattimena thrashed him 3-0 in the second round - taking eight legs in a row

Hanging on at the end, Wade needed to hit a double 10 to level the final set 2-2 but twice missed and then only hit 10 to hand Wattimena the opportunity to win. 

Wattimena then hit 16 and double eight to close out the thrashing before raising his arms to the crowd in celebration. 

He will face either Wesley Plaisier or two-time champion Peter Wright in the third round, with that pair set to meet at 7pm on Tuesday evening. 

The world No 36 averaged 99.17 in the match while Wade managed 97.01.

This was Wade's 21st appearance at the World Championship, with his debut having come in 2005. 

The second round has become a scene of frustration for him in recent years, having exited at the hands of Jim Williams in the 2023 edition and Matt Campbell inthe 2024 version. 

However, he remains a major force in the game and it was in the 2022 competition that he reached his most recent semis, losing 6-3 to eventual runner-up Michael Smith.

Earlier this year, he vowed to win a major, saying: 'I think I'll win a major in the next 12 months, definitely. But I set myself a target for the backend of this year and that was top ten.

'I think I'm nearly... I'll be there, thereabouts, so we'll do one thing at a time, hopefully that will come and things will work out, they always do eventually.'