Cross: "It's a massive honour and I can't wait to represent my country - it's not something you get to do very often so it means a lot."
Friday 1 June 2018 21:15, UK
The World Cup of Darts continues live on Sky Sports at the Eissporthalle in Frankfurt on Friday night, as the first round comes to a close.
There are eight remaining first-round ties in store on Friday evening, and the action gets underway live on Sky Sports Action from 6pm.
Defending champions Netherlands headline the second night of action, as Michael van Gerwen and Raymond van Barneveld begin their assault for a record-equalling fourth World Cup of Darts title.
The Dutch darting giants kick off their campaign against the Gibraltar pairing of Dyson Parody and debutant Justin Broton - who will be hoping to secure just their country's second World Cup of Darts win.
However, with the Netherlands failing to qualify for this year's football World Cup, world No 1 Van Gerwen is determined to give the Dutch fans something to cheer this summer.
"It would be very nice to win this title again and give the Dutch fans something to cheer about," MVG admitted.
"It's different for us and I always enjoy playing with Raymond, and we're aiming to win again. I live for winning trophies and that's my goal this week.
"We have had some great performances and done quite well over the years but we really want to improve our record by defending our title," he added.
England will be represented by a new-look pairing of world champion Rob Cross and Dave Chisnall in Frankfurt, and the four-time winners embark on their bid for a record fifth title when they face Czech Republic's Roman Benecky and Karel Sedlacek.
This will be the first time since the tournament's inception in 2010 that neither Phil Taylor or Adrian Lewis will feature for England, but 'Voltage' is relishing the prospect of making his World Cup debut.
"It's a massive honour and I can't wait to represent my country - it's not something you get to do very often so it means a lot," Cross admitted.
"It's a completely different tournament for me too with it being a pairs format, but I'm excited about teaming up with Dave.
"England have done well in the past so there's something to live up to, but we'll do our best this weekend. I'm buzzing."
Sixth seeds Northern Ireland, who are led by World Grand Prix champion Daryl Gurney and former Grand Prix finalist Brendan Dolan, face a potentially tricky opener against the Polish duo of Krzysztof Ratajski and Tytus Kanik, who have both impressed on the Pro Tour in 2018.
World Youth champion Dimitri van den Bergh will make his World Cup bow for 2013 finalists Belgium alongside Kim Huybrechts, with Kim's older brother Ronny missing out on the tournament for the first time in five years.
The seventh seeds have been pitted against the Republic of Ireland's pairing of Steve Lennon and William O'Connor, with Lennon confirming his World Cup berth after reaching last month's Dutch Darts Masters final.
Host nation Germany will be made up of exciting young duo Max Hopp, 21, and Martin Schindler, 21, for the second consecutive year.
The pair reached the quarter-finals of last year's event and they will be roared on by a partisan Frankfurt crowd when they face Sweden's Daniel Larsson and Dennis Nilsson.
Last year's giant-killers Singapore kick off Friday night's action when they lock horns with New Zealand's pairing of Cody Harris and Warren Parry, who will team up for the second time in three years.
The veteran Paul Lim, 64, aided by his namesake Harith, caused one of the biggest shocks in World Cup history when they dumped out top seeds Scotland en route to reaching the quarter-finals 12 months ago, and they'll be hoping for a repeat performance.
Elsewhere, Devon Petersen will make his sixth World Cup appearance for two-time quarter-finalists South Africa, with Liam O'Brien making his debut alongside 'The African Warrior'.
South Africa will face Hungary's Tamas Alexits and Nandor Bezzeg for a place in round two with the Hungarians searching for a third opening-round win in four years at this event.
Kim Viljanen and Marko Kantele will lead Finland's charge for the fourth consecutive year against Greece - who are appearing in their third World Cup, with John Michael and Veniamin Symeonidis flying the flag for them.
Darts is back on your Sky Sports screens at the end of this month with the World Cup of Darts, live from Frankfurt - four days of live coverage get underway from May 31- June 3rd
Keep up to date with the latest darts news, previews, reports, reaction and expert analysis. Get all the latest at www.skysports.com/darts and join in the conversation @SkySportsDarts- don't forget to use #LoveTheDarts
