World Darts Championship: Daryl Gurney on how to beat MVG, his a tough draw and his Premier League hopes

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Daryl Gurney feels he's found the secret to beating Michael van Gerwen and has no fears about being in the same half of the draw as him ahead of his PDC World Championship opener on Tuesday night.

Listen to the interview by clicking below or scroll down to read the full article

The Northern Irishman claimed arguably the finest victory in his career last month when defeating the world number one in an epic conclusion to the Players Championship Finals in Minehead.

The dramatic bullseye finish to take out 85 completed an 11-9 triumph that sparked wild scenes of celebration from the crowd and tears of joy from Gurney, who added a second televised title to his CV having also won the World Grand Prix in 2017.

By doing so Gurney also ended a 13-match winless streak against MVG, which included a 6-6 draw in his debut Premier League season, dating back to 2016 while he'd never beaten the world number one on television.

So at 9-8 down and with MVG averaging over 100, you could have forgiven Gurney for thinking 'here we go again' but now he's broken the stranglehold, he believes a crucial lesson has been learned.

He said: "In the past I’ve sometimes thought the way this man plays I can’t beat him because his finishing and his set up is so good. Even from 300 out he always seems to win a leg in six darts.

"I played him in a European Tour event before that final and I said ‘whatever happens I’m just gonna give it my all’ but I found myself 4-2 down despite averaging 117! On two legs I was sitting on 61 and 65 after nine but he took out a 161 and a 145! At times like that you’ve just got to sit back and accept he’s a special player and world number one for a reason.

"You just have to tell yourself ‘he’s not missing today but next time you never know’. And in the Players final he wasn’t taking out those ton+ finishes.

"I think what I learned from all this is that all those defeats I was playing to his pace. And Michael is very fast.

"But in the final I played at my pace and wasn’t worried by what he was doing. I kept my calm instead of rushing and letting my heart rate get up, which can affect your throw. It was a long day. Had it been the second match I could have matched him but because I didn’t have the greatest years, I wasn’t used to playing so many matches in one day!

"The way he was playing against Gary Anderson in the semi-final, I knew it would be hard to stick with him. But my plan was to win the bull, throw first, try and stay in front of him and if he breaks me, just try and break straight back. It was a lot of grit, determination and never say die."

Van Gerwen's defeat in his 61st televised final was the latest in a longer than usual list of majors he's failed to win this year having also missed out at the UK Open Finals, World Matchplay, Champions League of Darts, European Championship, World Series of Darts Finals and Grand Slam of Darts - although he did win 18 titles including the Masters, Premier League and World Grand Prix.

Gurney feels this is predominantly down to the rest of the world's elite raising their game rather than the Dutchman's standards slipping too much.

He said: "I think he may have come off a slight percentage from having won almost everything last year and the year before that – but it’s more to do with everyone else being more dedicated and putting in more practice.

"Michael is still doing his 100+ averages but if there’s a lot more others capable of that now and if we take our chances – as we’ve seen with myself, Steve West and other people who’ve beaten him this year, you can do it. The top 32 in the world can all do 100+ averages."

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If Gurney is going to reach his first World Championship final this year he'll probably need to get past both Gary Anderson and van Gerwen but being in such a tough half of the draw doesn't faze him.

The 32-year-old, whose best performance at Alexandra Palace was a run to the 2017 World Championship quarter-finals, added: "I always believe that to be the best you’ve got to beat the best and I’m not one of these players who thinks about wanting to be in the opposite half to MVG or Gary.

"That would mean you’re hoping for easier games and my mentality is that you’ve got to beat the best. I’ll go out there and give it my all and if it’s not enough, as long as I’ve played to the best of my ability, entertained the crowd and the better man won then I’m happy."

Earlier this year Gurney enjoyed a pretty solid debut campaign in the Premier League but is the first to admit his results for the rest of the season, prior to the Players Championship Finals, were unlikely to earn him a spot in the 2019 edition.

And even now, he wouldn't have any qualms with being left out of the 10-man line-up.

He said: "Had I not won the Players Championship Finals and someone asked me if I deserve to be back in the Premier League, I’d have told them no.

"Even though I still won the Players Championship, one result probably doesn’t change that but it helps.

"If they were going to turn around to me and say I’ve been left out for someone else, I’d be all for it. I like to earn my place and not just given it. If they say Raymond van Barneveld is being given my spot because he’s retiring and I take a year out, I’d be all for it. It’s not my decision and it’s out of my hands.

"It’s all about keeping the fans happy and giving them the players they want to see."

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