Van Gerwen makes ‘mess’ of the European Championship final and loses himself

In the break, however, Van Gerwen was patched up and miraculously continued the duel against The Iceman. He shook his head a few times, fought back and finally saw the high-quality match end in a 10-8 victory. Both ended up with an average of more than 107 points per three arrows.

In the semi-final battle, Englishman Nathan Aspinall appeared to be heading for an outright punishment when he faced a 7-1 deficit after eight legs. The Asp scrambled back to 10-10, but then had to bow his head to Van Gerwen in the last of the 21 legs. De Brabander threw seven triples and thus laid the foundation for reaching the final: 11-10.

In the run-up to the final, Van Gerwen had to watch from the wings as Rob Cross crushed opponent Joe Cullen. Cross only awarded him three legs, and he also finished the match with a 120 finish, also known as Shanghai 20 in jargon.

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That party seemed to lead to confusion in the mind of the Brabander. At the moment of truth, it seemed the best thing to do with Van Gerwen, who faced a 6-4 deficit halfway through the match. Not only in gesture, but also in word he made it clear that he was not feeling well.

It was to Van Gerwen’s credit that he didn’t even make the slightest effort to look for excuses afterwards. “Whoever plays like this deserves nothing but to lose.”

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