Marko Kantele confirmed his qualification for the 2023/24 World Darts Championship after winning his fourth Nordic & Baltic ProTour title of the season on home soil in Finland last weekend.
The penultimate weekend of 2023 Nordic & Baltic ProTour action took place at the Hotelli Tallukka in Vääksy, and Kantele continued his domestic dominance to secure an Alexandra Palace return.
The 54-year-old had won three of the year’s first six events, and he maintained that ratio with victory in Event Seven on Saturday, sealed with a deciding-leg victory over Sweden’s Strongman Dennis Nilsson.
Kantele fought back from 5-2 down to triumph in a dramatic contest, reeling off four straight legs and converting a 108 checkout to complete the comeback, after Nilsson had spurned four match darts in the decider.
Finland’s World Cup veteran had conceded just three legs in reaching the quarter-finals, and he set up a showdown against Nilsson after recording successive 6-3 wins over Sami Högström and Benjamin Reus.
Kantele’s Event Seven success ensures he cannot finish outside the top two on the Nordic & Baltic ProTour Order of Merit, therefore he will make his fifth World Darts Championship appearance in December.
Jeffrey de Graaf is aiming to join Kantele in the sport’s showpiece event, claiming Sunday’s Event Eight spoils to celebrate his maiden Nordic & Baltic ProTour title.
The Swede produced a stunning display to whitewash Kantele in their semi-final showdown, before a 6-1 demolition of recent European Tour debutant Paavo Myller saw him scoop the €1,200 top prize.
De Graaf recovered from 5-4 down to edge out Jani Laurila in the last 16, but he relinquished just four legs in his other five matches to overhaul his compatriot Daniel Larsson and move into second spot on the Order of Merit.
It was a weekend to remember for De Graaf, who also won through the ET11 Qualifier to seal his place in September’s Interwetten German Darts Open in Jena.
The 32-year-old saw off his fellow countryman Nilsson and five Finnish stars to confirm his first European Tour appearance of 2023, defeating Jonas Masalin in the ET11 decider.
Meanwhile, Kantele emerged victorious in the ET10 Qualifier, recording a 6-4 success over Nilsson to book his place at the Interwetten European Darts Matchplay in Trier, which begins later this month.
He also saw off Reus and Andreas Harrysson by the same scoreline in the latter stages, having earlier dumped out Lithuania’s Mindaugas Barauskas and Sweden’s Oskar Lukasiak.
The Nordic & Baltic ProTour season concludes on July 15-16, as Pro Tour Events 9-10 and Qualifiers for ET12-13 take place in Riga, Latvia.
De Graaf is currently in pole position to join Kantele at Alexandra Palace, sitting €350 above Larsson on the Order of Merit, with Danish youngster Reus further adrift in fourth position.
Nordic & Baltic ProTour Event Seven
Marko Kantele 6-5 Dennis Nilsson
Nordic & Baltic ProTour Event Eight
Jeffrey de Graaf 6-1 Paavo Myller
European Darts Matchplay (ET10 Qualifier)
Marko Kantele 6-4 Dennis Nilsson
German Darts Open (ET10 Qualifier)
Jeffrey de Graaf 6-3 Jonas Masalin
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