Wayne Mardle has expressed deep concern for Josh Rock's form, warning that the Northern Irishman's torrid Premier League Darts campaign could spill over into other tournaments. Rock, the world number seven, is enduring a difficult debut year in the prestigious invitational, sitting bottom of the table with zero points after seven nights. His struggles hit a low in Dublin, where Gerwyn Price steamrolled him 6-0 without conceding a single leg, with Rock averaging just 84.21.
Mardle, a former pro and Sky Sports analyst, sees Rock at a crossroads. "I really feel for Josh at this point," he said. "What is going to happen now is that it's going to go two ways. Is he going to let this slide into the other events and start playing poorly in them because he is losing confidence in the Premier League? Or he's carrying on — at the moment, he is playing well away from the Premier League." Mardle emphasised the danger of letting the poor run mentally affect other performances, stating, "You can't let one seep into the other. Hopefully, he has got the strength of mind to continue playing well elsewhere. Then finally kick it here. But he does not look a confident man at all."
The uncertainty is translating directly onto the oche, with Rock appearing lost on stage and forcing his throw. "You can see he is trying to throw them firm. Which is great, but they are not going in," Mardle observed. He highlighted Rock's issues on doubles, noting, "Every chance he is getting — which is very limited — he is fluffing his lines on doubles because the pressure is too much." Mardle added that Rock may not fully realise how far his level has dropped, saying, "He won't believe how bad he is playing. You can picture whoever you want being last and you could be right. But no one has pictured him playing as poorly as he is. It is not pleasant to see."
The coming weeks are crucial for Rock, not just to add points to his Premier League campaign but to prevent this dip in form from developing into a broader crisis of confidence.
