Darts results: Michael van Gerwen wins his third Premier League Darts night in a row

By Sporting Life

Darts

Thu March 09, 2023 · 2y ago

Michael van Gerwen celebrated a record-breaking third consecutive nightly win in the Cazoo Premier League on Thursday, courtesy of a 6-4 success against World Champion Michael Smith on Night Six in Liverpool.

Van Gerwen came into Thursday fresh from back-to-back victories in Dublin and Exeter, and he continued his dominance to become the first player to win three successive nights since the format was introduced last year.

The Dutchman kicked off his campaign at the M&S Bank Arena with a resounding 6-2 victory against Jonny Clayton, before dispatching Peter Wright 6-1 to set up a showdown against Smith.

The pair kicked off proceedings with 15-dart holds, although Van Gerwen struck the first blow, punishing three missed darts at double from the St Helens star to break in leg three.

Van Gerwen extended his lead with a 14-darter, but Smith came roaring back, converting a clinical 111 combination to reduce the arrears, which he followed with back-to-back 180s in leg six.

Smith was unable to produce another moment of nine-dart magic against the Dutchman, but after levelling the tie with a 12-darter, he continued his blistering burst with an 11-dart hold in leg seven.

MvG MAKES IT A HAT-TRICK! 🎩

Michael van Gerwen defeats Michael Smith 6-4 in the Night Six final in Liverpool!

He becomes the first player to win three PL nights in a row!

📺 https://t.co/kx9ccUNols | #PLDarts Final pic.twitter.com/JTIbPgHnvG
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) March 9, 2023

However, Van Gerwen was undeterred, restoring his lead with a 14-dart break in leg nine, before wrapping up victory on double ten, after Smith had wired a dart at the bull to force a decider.

“You have to turn up in a final against a player like Michael Smith, and I’m glad I did,” said Van Gerwen, who has won his last nine Premier League matches.

“When you are under pressure, it’s the best feeling in the world to produce good darts. It gives you joy and it gives you confidence.

“I know how to win without playing my A-game, but I think in patches tonight against Michael Smith, I did play really well. I am not where I want to be yet, but I am winning games and when you see the table, I can’t really complain!”

Smith was struggling with illness ahead of Thursday’s action, but he claimed battling wins over Dimitri Van den Bergh and Nathan Aspinall to claim a precious three points on Merseyside.

The world number one produced 110 and 122 finishes in his 6-3 win over Van den Bergh, before crashing in five 180s to dispatch a profligate Aspinall to ease through to the evening’s showpiece.

In the quarter-finals, Aspinall produced a flawless display to inflict a fifth consecutive defeat on Night One winner Chris Dobey, converting all six of his attempts at double to complete a 6-4 success.

Dobey succumbed with a ton-plus average for the second straight week, as Aspinall converted 112, 143 and 100 combinations to maintain his position in the top four.

Meanwhile, in the evening’s curtain-raiser, Wright opened his Premier League account in 2023 with a dramatic 6-5 success against Gerwyn Price, despite missing eight match darts in a dramatic finale.

Wright raced into a 5-2 lead before Price responded to restore parity at five apiece, although the Welshman was unable to complete the comeback – spurning three match darts of his own in the decider.