Rob Cross PDC World Darts Odds: Former champion is 14/1 to win back the crown

The PDC World Darts Championship returns on Friday 15 December at London’s iconic Alexandra Palace and one player who will be returning to this venue with very fond memories is none other than Rob Cross. ‘Voltage’ took the darting world by storm when he won this tournament back in 2018 in what was his debut on the Ally Pally stage.

Cross’ fairytale journey in the 2018 tournament saw most of the darting community rally behind him because it is so rare for a freshman on the PDC circuit to do what he did on the Ally Pally stage.

It was a final to remember as he defeated the legendary Phil ‘The Power’ Taylor 7-2 in sets, in what was Taylor’s final appearance at the World Darts Championship. On his way to the final, Cross defeated Michael Smith, Dimitri van den Bergh and Michael van Gerwen, beating the latter in an epic semi-final. It was a great sporting tale for the ages.

Since then, Cross has won three more major titles, two of which quickly followed his Ally Pally triumph. He has won the European Championship twice (2019 and 2021) and the World Matchplay (2019). He has also been a finalist in several other major events, including last month’s Grand Slam of Darts, but his record at Ally Pally hasn’t been great reading since his 2018 heroics.

As we gear up for another spectacle in London over the festive period, Rod Studd profiles Cross’ chances this winter.

He tells Betfred: “He [Cross] hasn’t been great at Ally Pally since then [2018], he’s not got beyond the last 16.

“The Voltage looks to be coming into form at just the right time. He reached the final of the Grand Slam of Darts and averaged 103.5 against Luke Humphries.”

Could Cross become just the seventh man to win the World Darts Championship for a second time?