Michael van Gerwen continues European Tour dominance with Austrian Darts Open triumph
Michael van Gerwen secured his second European Tour title of the season at the 2022 Austrian Darts Open in Graz with an 8-5 defeat of Danny Noppert in the final.
Van Gerwen followed up his German Darts Championship triumph in March by adding a second £25,000 title of the campaign and a 34th on the Euro Tour in total.
The world number three overcame fellow Dutchman Noppert in front of a capacity crowd at the Premstättner Halle on Sunday night to continue his emphatic resurgence.
“I always want to win, I always put pressure on my shoulders so to win this title means a lot,” said Van Gerwen.
“We all had to wait a long time to play this tournament again but this crowd made it worth the wait; they were phenomenal, not just for me but for everyone in the tournament.
“It was really hard to perform on stage because of the heat which makes me even more proud of myself to get this win.”
Van Gerwen avenged Thursday’s Premier League Quarter-Final defeat to James Wade in Dublin with a narrow 6-5 victory, having recovered from 4-2 down with the aid of a 170 checkout.
Van Gerwen’s most impressive display of the weekend saw him average 106 in a 6-1 demolition of Dirk van Duijvenbode, before seeing off Stephen Bunting 7-5 in the Semi-Finals.
The final saw Noppert hit back from 3-0 down with a 120 checkout on the way to level at 3-3, and the pair remained all square four legs later.
The 12th leg proved decisive as Van Gerwen landed a 14-dart break of throw to open up daylight at 7-5, before following up with another 14-darter to seal victory.
The wait for a maiden European Tour title goes on for Noppert, who reached his first final having previously made the Semi-Finals on three occasions.
The reigning UK Open champion enjoyed victories over Premier League leader Jonny Clayton, Joe Cullen and Nathan Aspinall en route to the final.
It was another encouraging weekend for Aspinall on his return from injury, defeating Madars Razma and Ricky Evans on Sunday to reach the Last Four.
Bunting began the day by defeating Callan Rydz 6-4 and overcame European Champion Rob Cross by the same scoreline in the Quarter-Finals before eventually being halted by MVG.
The PDC European Tour continues with the European Darts Open from May 6-8 in Leverkusen.
BET £10 AND GET £30 IN FREE BETS WHEN YOU REGISTER HERE (18+ | T&Cs Apply)
Austrian Darts Open 2022 – Day Three Results
Sunday May 1
Afternoon Session
Third Round
Danny Noppert 6-2 Jonny Clayton
Joe Cullen 6-2 Krzysztof Ratajski
Danny Jansen 0-6 Ricky Evans
Madars Razma 2-6 Nathan Aspinall
Zoran Lerchbacher 1-6 Dirk van Duijvenbode
Michael van Gerwen 6-5 James Wade
Gabriel Clemens 5-6 Rob Cross
Callan Rydz 4-6 Stephen Bunting
Evening Session
Quarter-Finals
Danny Noppert 6-1 Joe Cullen
Ricky Evans 5-6 Nathan Aspinall
Dirk van Duijvenbode 1-6 Michael van Gerwen
Rob Cross 4-6 Stephen Bunting
Semi-Finals
Danny Noppert 7-2 Nathan Aspinall
Michael van Gerwen 7-5 Stephen Bunting
Final
Michael van Gerwen 8-5 Danny Noppert
