Adrian Lewis has insisted that playing in last week's PDC World Cup of Darts was ideal preparation for him ahead of the start of his Premier League campaign.

The two-time world champion partnered Phil Taylor as England retained their World Cup trophy last weekend and after playing below-par during the early rounds of the tournament, Lewis has admitted that his performance in the final has prepared him for his opening match with Simon Whitlock.

Lewis told PDC.TV: "Playing in the World Cup was great for me. We had plenty of games during the weekend and that was good for my game. I didn't start brilliantly and I had to improve - I felt like I was letting Phil down and the harder I tried, the worse it got.

"Eventually, I relaxed and I ended up with a 105 average against Ronny Huybrechts in the final, so it came together in the end.

"It's going to be a tough game for me against Simon on Thursday, but I think I'm in good shape."

The 10-man tournament kicks off in Belfast on Thursday night.