Michael van Gerwen won the World Matchplay darts for the third time in his career on Sunday evening. This is one of the most important tournaments of the PDC federation. The 33-year-old Vlijmenaar settled in a very exciting final with Gerwyn Price from Wales. ‘MVG’ also won the World Matchplay in 2015 and 2016.
Van Gerwen didn’t start the game well. He missed many chances to throw out and fell 4-0 behind. The put ‘MVG’ caught on to that, almost even with a nine-darter. However, he missed the double 12. But the tenth arrow was hit.
On steam
After that, Van Gerwen picked up steam. With a 160 finish, he came back to 3-4, but for a while he was unable to equalize with the Welshman. Until the 24th put.
A little later, the Vlijmenaar took the lead for the first time in the final with a nice 130-finish and he did not relinquish that lead. With a 121 finish, he decided the final: 18-14.
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Difficult period
“Holding up this trophy again means a lot to me,” said Van Gerwen after the final. De Vlijmenaar was recently operated on on his arm. He spoke of a difficult period in his darts career. “To come back and beat a player with Gerwyn’s qualities makes me really proud!”
According to him, this final contained everything that makes darts so beautiful. “Drama, phenomenal play, high scores, fantastic finishes… You can’t imagine how happy I am.”
“When Michael gets so hot, it’s hard to do anything about it”
Price, the 2021 PDC world champion, called Van Gerwen a deserved winner. “He’s a fantastic player. When he gets on top of that, it’s hard to do anything about it.”
