Van Gerwen Wins a Thriller to Set Up Clash With Cross at World Series Finals

Michael van Gerwen kept his dream of a sixth Jack’s Casino World Series of Darts Finals crown alive on Friday night, edging past fellow Dutchman Wessel Nijman in a dramatic first-round battle in Amsterdam.

The crowd at AFAS Live were treated to a thrilling encounter as Van Gerwen was pushed all the way by his young compatriot, who threatened to deliver a shock victory in front of a partisan home audience. Nijman, showing no signs of stage fright, raced into leads of 2-0, 3-1 and later 5-4, forcing the three-time World Champion onto the ropes.

Yet, as he has done countless times in his career, Van Gerwen found another gear. A spectacular 132 checkout on the bull helped him claw his way back into contention, before he survived a match dart in the penultimate leg. With the match balanced on a knife edge, Van Gerwen produced a stunning 174 set-up and calmly dispatched double 18 to clinch a deciding-leg victory with a superb 104.75 average.

The victory sets up a mouth-watering second-round clash with Rob Cross, rekindling one of modern darts’ fiercest rivalries. Van Gerwen admitted afterwards that the performance ranked among his best in front of a Dutch crowd for some time.

“Wessel is a fantastic player and his cover shots were unbelievable tonight,” Van Gerwen said. “I felt good throughout the match, and that made the difference. To win in front of my home fans playing that well gives me a lot of joy.”

Humphries Scrapes Through

World number one Luke Humphries also survived a scare, squeezing past former champion James Wade in another nail-biting encounter. Wade, who lifted the trophy back in 2018, came agonisingly close to victory after missing two match darts. Humphries pounced on those mistakes, producing legs of 14 and 13 darts at the death to claim a 6-5 success with a 99 average.

The reigning World Champion was the first to admit his display was patchy.“It was a strange game,” Humphries reflected. “At times I played really well, but there were also some poor spells. My consistency isn’t there yet, but I’ll take the win. Once I get through that opening round, I usually grow stronger, so this is an important result for me.”

Noppert Topples Top Seed

The evening session also produced one of the first shocks of the tournament as Dutch number two Danny Noppert dumped out top seed Stephen Bunting. Noppert delivered a steady 6-4 victory to delight the home crowd, setting up a last-16 meeting with World Cup winner Josh Rock.

Rock had earlier showcased his finishing prowess with a 121 checkout on the bull to seal a 6-3 triumph against Krzysztof Ratajski. The young Northern Irishman looks increasingly comfortable on the big stage and will fancy his chances against Noppert in what promises to be a high-quality contest.

Cross Begins With Confidence

Elsewhere, Rob Cross returned to Dutch soil in style, building on the confidence of his Dutch Darts Masters victory earlier this year in Den Bosch. The 2018 World Champion overcame New Zealand’s Haupai Puha 6-3, impressively landing 60% of his doubles to book his place in round two.

That win set up the much-anticipated showdown with Van Gerwen, a fixture that rarely disappoints. With both men showing glimpses of top form on Friday, their Saturday evening clash could easily steal the headlines.

Heta and De Decker Progress

Australian number one Damon Heta produced one of the stand-out performances of the night, demolishing Joe Cullen 6-1 to register his first televised victory over the Yorkshireman. Heta’s heavy scoring and clinical finishing ensured a straightforward passage into round two.

He will now face Belgium’s Mike De Decker, who overcame Gabriel Clemens 6-3 despite the German threatening a moment of perfection when he missed double 12 for a nine-darter in leg three. De Decker, buoyed by his World Grand Prix triumph earlier this year, will relish another chance to impress on the TV stage.

Dutch Successes Continue

The Dutch crowd had further reason to cheer when Kevin Doets edged out Jermaine Wattimena in the evening’s opener. Doets survived four match darts before clinching a nerve-racking win that sets up a second-round meeting with Humphries.

Looking Ahead

The first round concludes on Saturday afternoon with reigning champion Luke Littler beginning his title defence against Australian veteran Simon Whitlock. Other notable ties include Gerwyn Price taking on American Danny Lauby, Jonny Clayton facing Jason Brandon, and Raymond van Barneveld clashing with Norway’s Cor Dekker in what promises to be another electric day of darts.

Peter Wright and Cameron Menzies will also collide in an all-Scottish showdown, while Nathan Aspinall, Chris Dobey, and Ross Smith are set to make their tournament entrances.

Once the first-round drama is complete, Saturday evening will host the second round, before the competition narrows down to the quarter-finals on Sunday afternoon. The semi-finals and final will then bring the curtain down on Sunday night, where one player will lift the Phil Taylor Trophy after three days of thrilling action.

Van Gerwen Wins a Thriller to Set Up Clash With Cross at World Series Finals

2025 Jack’s Casino World Series of Darts Finals

Friday September 12

First Round x8

Kevin Doets 6-5 Jermaine Wattimena

Josh Rock 6-3 Krzysztof Ratajski

Damon Heta 6-1 Joe Cullen

Mike De Decker 6-3 Gabriel Clemens

Luke Humphries 6-5 James Wade

Michael van Gerwen 6-5 Wessel Nijman

Danny Noppert 6-4 Stephen Bunting

Rob Cross 6-3 Haupai Puha

Saturday September 13

Afternoon Session (1245 local time)

First Round x8

Chris Dobey v Luke Woodhouse

Cameron Menzies v Peter Wright

Jonny Tata v Ross Smith

Cor Dekker v Raymond van Barneveld

Gerwyn Price v Danny Lauby

Luke Littler v Simon Whitlock

Jonny Clayton v Jason Brandon

Nathan Aspinall v Dave Chisnall