Michael van Gerwen was left stunned 10-6 by Danny Knoppert in the last 16 of the Grand Slam of Darts as Luke Littler progressed to the quarter-finals.
The match between MVG and Noppert was the most breathtaking, with over four tons of checkouts in the first five legs. Their respective big fish, plus Knoppert’s 101 checkout and Van Gerwen’s sensational 160 checkout, contributed to a great show for the Wolverhampton crowd.
Things calmed down a bit in the second session, but the darts were slow throughout and in the 10th leg Van Gerwen gave Knoppert a reprieve after missing a break chance on D18, giving the Dutchman a 6-4 lead.
From there, Knoppert took full control, dominating the nervous darts until he came within a leg of winning with three consecutive legs and ultimately finishing the match on top.
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Michael van Gerwen and Danny Knoppert both hit 170 checkouts during their match at the Grand Slam of Darts.
“I couldn’t decide in the end! I played well throughout the match and everything went my way, but I was a little nervous at the end,” Knoppert told Sky Sports.
“Why was I nervous? I don’t know. I shouldn’t have been nervous. I could have crossed the line much easier.”
“It was a roller coaster of a match. I think I was able to withstand the pressure and score well in the match, so I’m really happy.
“If I keep playing like this, there’s going to be problems for everyone.”
Littler discovers doubling magic as title defense progresses
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Highlights of Luke Littler and Wessel Nyman clashing in the grand slam of darts.
Littler continued his title defense at Wolverhampton with an impressive double performance averaging 105 in a 10-4 win over Wessel Nyman.
Littler reached another level in the opening session, averaging almost 111 as he helped clean sweep all five legs on offer as Niziman couldn’t find an answer to his electric play.
Niziman then came back from the break and lost control a bit to bring the score to 5-2, but again missed a big chance on a slow break, giving Littler a 7-3 lead. ‘The Nuke’ realized how important the 10th leg was and celebrated.
This big moment put the match firmly back in Littler’s favor, coming out swinging to break the throw, bull for an 86, and confirm an 83 percent success rate in doubles with a 96 checkout to win the game.
That means Littler continues his quest for world No. 1, a spot in a Grand Slam final that is good enough to dethrone Luke Humphries.
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Luke Littler says he has his sights set on winning a Grand Slam and becoming world number one after his win over Wessel Nyman.
“I just want to win as soon as possible. I know Wessel, we’ve been competing on the Pro Tour, so it was special to beat him tonight. We can move on to the last eight,” Littler told Sky Sports.
“If someone plays their best darts they might catch me, but I felt really good tonight. I have my eyes set on the title, world number one, everything.”
“I know that if I make it to the final, I will be number one in the world, so I am taking each match seriously. I hope that I can have another good match like the match play with Josh.”
Wenig scores monumental win, Rock wins against Littler
Littler will face Josh Locke in the quarterfinals. Lock was pushed all the way by Connor Scutt in the deciding match and won 10-9, although neither player showed their best darts.
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Josh Locke says he’s grateful to have made it to the quarterfinals despite struggling to hit 180 in his match against Connor Scutt.
Despite Lock taking a 3-0 lead, Scutt scored and took chances, conceding a ton of doubles and the Northern Irishman having 16 trebleless hits in the first eight legs.
Drifting as in the first session, Rock again spun to get three legs up, but then there was a moment when Scutt took three in a row, and momentum swung between the pair as the match progressed.
Lock then shook his head in a hard-fought contest with a precisely timed 14-dart leg on D9 to seal his place in the quarter-finals.
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The emotional Lukas Wennig defeats fellow German Nico Springer in the Darts Grand Slam.
Meanwhile, Noppert will face Lukas Wennig, who picked up the biggest win of his career to date with a 10-8 win over Nico Springer. In doubles, he had an incredible 53 percent success rate and crossed the line to reach his first major quarterfinals.
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Lukas Wennig took a 154 checkout against Nico Springer in the Darts Grand Slam.
The two Germans were close from the start, with Springer taking the first two before Wenig fought back and took two of his own, with the latter continually fighting back and scoring a sensational 154 checkout to level the score at 5-5.
After that, nothing separated the pair until Wenig made his move on a throw break to take a 9-7 lead and finally cap off a monumental moment at the top.
What happens on Friday?
The Grand Slam quarter-finals begin on Friday, with battles between Ricky Evans and Gerwyn Price and former Grand Slam champions Luke Humphries and Michael Smith.
Friday 14 November 1900 (Sky Sports + and Sky Sports Main Event)
2 quarterfinals (best of 31 legs)
Ricky Evans vs Gerwyn Price
Luke Humphries vs Michael Smith
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