Rob Cross delivered one of the standout performances of Friday night at the 2026 Flanders Darts Trophy, averaging 104.64 in a 6-3 victory over Cristo Reyes to advance to the second round in Antwerp. Reyes was far from outclassed, finishing with a 102.68 average himself, but Cross repeatedly found the bigger moments in a high-quality contest.
The former world champion enjoyed most of the battle, even if he was less impressed by the closing stages. "Yeah, I suppose. Up until the last leg. I thought the last leg was rubbish!" Cross joked afterwards. His praise for Reyes was far more serious. "He's dangerous. He's been dangerous for years. I've known Cristo probably nine years now. Everyone else only seems to know him from this year," he said. "He's organised, he's dangerous, he can play. He's a potential banana skin for anyone, honestly."
That respect comes from first-hand experience. Cross recalled one of his earliest European qualifier meetings with Reyes, when the Spaniard produced a nine-darter in the opening leg and still left Cross with a defeat despite a huge average. "Yeah, he's probably got years on me. He's got about ten years' experience," Cross explained. "I played him in a European qualifier, one of my first ones. Nine-darter, first leg, and I think I lost with a 109 average. So I know what he's capable of, and fair play to Cristo."
Friday night was different. Cross felt he managed to shut Reyes down whenever the Spaniard threatened to build momentum, helped by some sharp scoring and a couple of 12-darters. "He never quite got going like that tonight. I stopped him at every opportunity with a couple of 12-darters there," Cross said. "But we move on tomorrow. And yeah, I'm glad it was cooler this week!"
The performance also reinforced Cross' own belief that he can go all the way this weekend. "Yeah, of course. I believe I can win this weekend," he said. "I believe I can go on to great things at this time of year, at the end of the year. I always look forward to it." Cross does not feel he is fully where he wants to be yet, admitting his practice time has been limited recently. "I'd like to put probably a little bit more practice in at the minute, which hasn't been available," he added. "But look, I'll play this weekend and I will get back to full strength where I want to be. If I achieve that this weekend, I believe I'll win." Cross now moves into the second round in Antwerp with his confidence high and a performance already on the board to justify it.
