Glen Durrant is confident of his chances of becoming only the second man to win a third consecutive BDO World Championship title.

The second seed hit seven 180s as he saw off New Zealand’s Mark McGrath 3-0 in the first round at Lakeside last night.

The victory took Durrant’s winning streak on the Lakeside stage to 11 games, the fourth best run in the history of the BDO World Championship. And the two-time world champion says it will take something special to beat him.

“The stage is amazing,” he said. “There was talk that the throw was a little bit longer, but not for me. I thought the throw was absolutely perfect.

“Someone’s going to have to play really well to beat me. That’s the philosophy, that’s the way I’m feeling right now.

“If someone’s going to beat me, they’re going to have to hit me really hard.”

Durrant enjoyed a near-perfect 2018 in the BDO’s flagship events, winning the World Championship, World Trophy and Finder Masters, and finishing runner-up in the World Masters.

“The confidence is sky high from the Finder Masters,” he said. “I call that the mock exam.

“Most of the BDO guys were there and I felt like I won it quite well. I was 4-1 down to Scott Waites at one point, then onwards I kicked in.”

Durrant can go joint-third on the list of winning streaks in the BDO World Championship with a victory over Scott Baker in the last 16, an opponent who the tournament favourite expects to test him.

“(Scott’s) Very quick. If I’ve got a weakness, it’s against fast players,” he said.

“If anything, give me a really slow Dennis Priestley style player and I’m happy. I’ve got a chance to get behind him and think before I throw my darts.

“Last time I played Scott I lost, so it’s certainly not a gimme. My philosophy is if he’s going to beat me he’s got to take four sets off me, and the way I feel right now that’s going to be difficult for anybody.”

Listen to Glen’s interview in full via the player below

Picture: Evert Zomer