Reigning champion Michael van Gerwen made Premier League Darts history on Night 6 in Liverpool, becoming the first player to win 3 Premier League nights since the new format was introduced. The rampant Dutchman moves 8 points clear at the top of the table after beating Michael Smith 6-4 in the Final at the M&S Bank Arena.
The World Number 3 won his first nightly competition of the 2023 competition 2 weeks ago in Dublin, after edging a last leg decider against Gerwyn Price 6-5 in the Final. Mighty Mike followed up with a second straight win after claiming success on Night 5 in Exeter, beating last year’s league phase winner Jonny Clayton 6-3 at the Westpoint Arena.
The 33-year-old continues to show his capabilities in the new format of the Premier League Darts, solidifying his spot at the top of the table ahead of the chasing pack.
The Vlijmen thrower opened in the second Quarter Final, beating Clayton 6-2 including 4 180s and a 104 check out in the opening leg of the match.
Van Gerwen went on to beat Peter Wright in the Semi Finals, with the league leader earning a 6-1 victory over the reigning Nordic Darts Masters champion.
Snakebite picked up his first win of the competition with his new look darts, beating Night 2 winner Gerwyn Price 6-5 in the opening match of the night in Liverpool.
Reigning champion Van Gerwen set up a rematch of the World Darts Championship Final with Michael Smith, after the World Number 1 came through against Dimitri van den Bergh in the Quarter Finals, before beating Nathan Aspinall 6-2 in the Semis.
The pair had played the one match so far in the 2023 Premier League, with the Dutchman prevailing in the Quarter Finals on the opening night in Belfast.
Mighty Mike repeated the trick on Night 6 after beating the reigning World Champion 6-4 in the Final, with the 33-year-old averaging 100.20 to delight the lively Liverpool crowd.
The battle of Michael’s provided 9 180s with Smith hitting 6 of them over the course of the 10 legs played. The match was won on the outer ring with Van Gerwen recording a checkout rate of 50% to make Premier League history by winning three consecutive Premier League nights, moving 13 points clear of 5th placed Dimitri van den Bergh as he continues his quest to make Finals night.
The darting roadshow heads to Nottingham next week for Night 7 with the league leader taking on Peter Wright in the Quarter Finals. Gerwyn Price will face Jonny Clayton in an all-Welsh battle and a crucial match in relation to the race for the Top 4.
By Harry Masterson
Premier League Night 6 Results:
Quarter Finals:
Peter Wright 6-5 Gerwyn Price
Michael van Gerwen 6-2 Jonny Clayton
Nathan Aspinall 6-4 Chris Dobey
Michael Smith 6-3 Dimitri van den Bergh
Semi Finals:
Michael van Gerwen 6-1 Peter Wright
Michael Smith 6-2 Nathan Aspinall
Final:
Michael van Gerwen 6-4 Michael Smith
Premier League Darts Table:
- Michael van Gerwen: 20pts
- Michael Smith: 12pts
- Nathan Aspinall: 11pts
- Gerwyn Price: 8pts
- Dimitri van den Bergh: 7pts
- Jonny Clayton: 7pts
- Chris Dobey: 5pts
- Peter Wright: 2pts
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