Michael van Gerwen’s run at the recent Dutch Darts Masters ended in disappointment as the 35-year-old Dutchman suffered a 6-3 defeat in the quarterfinals to Luke Littler. Despite facing a relatively underwhelming opponent in Littler, Van Gerwen struggled with his performance, averaging just over 90, a stark contrast to his usual high standards.
Having recently returned from a two-week vacation in Thailand, Van Gerwen was understandably rusty in his quarterfinal match. He had previously won his opening match against Dirk van Duijvenbode in Den Bosch, but against Littler, his form faltered. Van Gerwen himself acknowledged the challenges of returning to competitive play after a break, with some rustiness in his game. “You can’t expect everything to be right again after a vacation like that,” he said. “There really is still a lot of work to do. He will realize that and he will have to do something about it. Otherwise, it will remain like this: one day good and the other day less,” said Vincent van der Voort, reflecting on the inconsistency that Van Gerwen exhibited.
Van der Voort observed that Van Gerwen’s early throwing looked tight and restricted, which he noted is the opposite of what a player should do. Despite this, Van der Voort remains optimistic that Van Gerwen’s top form is close, pointing out that during warm-up sessions, Van Gerwen was hitting an extraordinary level. “In the warm-up, he achieved an insanely high level. He threw a nine-darter and one 180 after another. Even Raymond van Barneveld told him it wasn’t normal,” Van der Voort explained. “But then Michael goes on stage and it doesn’t go. So it’s in there, but he’s not getting it done on stage right now. That could be pressure or something completely different, but at the end of the day, that button has to be turned. The sooner the better.”
Van der Voort also suggested that there might have been some technical errors in Van Gerwen’s game, such as positioning. “I think he stood wrong, a little too far forward. And then you end up too low,” he explained plainly. “But he could also have been too eager. Then you overcompensate and things go wrong.” Despite these setbacks, Van der Voort is confident that Van Gerwen will regain his best form with time. “It will be fine, but it’s going to take time,” he concluded.
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Though the defeat was frustrating for Van Gerwen, his immense talent is still evident, and with time and adjustments, it’s clear he has the potential to bounce back to his top-level performances.
