Van Gerwen dumped out of Swiss Darts Trophy as nightmare year goes on
Michael van Gerwen's nightmare year went from bad to worse as he was dumped out of the Swiss Darts Trophy in his opening match by Mensur Suljovic 6-4 on Saturday night.
Mensur Suljovic celebrates a fourth straight victory over Michael van Gerwen to continue his charge on Swiss soil; you can watch the Grand Slam of Darts in Wolverhampton live on Sky Sports from November 14-22
Michael van Gerwen's nightmare year went from bad to worse as he was dumped out of the Swiss Darts Trophy in his opening match by Mensur Suljovic 6-4 on Saturday night.
Suljovic led 5-2 before Van Gerwen threatened a comeback but three missed darts to force a decider allowed Suljovic to take advantage.
It was Suljovic's fourth straight win over Van Gerwen and the fifth time in six tournaments that the Dutchman has exited after one match.
Defeat in Basel marks the first time Michael van Gerwen has lost his opening match in FOUR European Tour events in the same season since its inception in 2012 European Darts Trophy ❌ German Darts Grand Prix ❌ Flanders Darts Trophy ❌ Swiss Darts Trophy ❌
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Luke Humphries, Gian van Veen and Jonny Clayton all advanced to Finals Day as ten seeds crashed out on a remarkable day of action in Basel.
Newly crowned World Grand Prix champion Humphries was among the headline acts on Day Two at the St. Jakobshalle, where he prevailed against Kevin Doets.
Despite racing 3-0 ahead with 122 and 121 checkouts, Humphries was forced to survive a furious fightback from Doets, defying the Dutchman's 105.64 average to triumph in a breathless decider.
"I was really pleased with that performance," reflected Humphries, who averaged almost 103 and pinned 67% of his attempts at double.
"I felt like I was the better player for most of the game, but Kevin was really strong at the end there, so I had to really work my socks off."
European Champion Van Veen also impressed on Swiss soil, producing a hat-trick of ton-plus checkouts to whitewash a shell-shocked Niko Springer in just under ten minutes.
Clayton, meanwhile, stole the show with an irrepressible display against Maik Kuivenhoven, averaging 108.81 and landing two bullseye finishes to kick off his title bid in style.
The Welshman will take on Rob Cross for a place in the quarter-finals, after the former world champion halted Luke Woodhouse's mid-match fightback to close out a battling 6-4 victory.
There will be a new champion crowned at the St Jakobshalle on Sunday evening, as former champions Stephen Bunting and Martin Schindler crashed out on a day of upsets in Basel.
Swedish star Jeffrey de Graaf put in a clinical display of doubling to account for reigning champion Bunting, while Schindler was swept aside by Tom Bissell, who will feature at Finals Day for the first time in his European Tour career.
Dirk van Duijvenbode recorded a fifth straight win against James Wade to end the left-hander's bid for back-to-back European Tour titles, and a resurgent Michael Smith now awaits the Dutchman in the last 16.
The 2023 world champion delivered one of his best performances of the year to seal a 6-4 against Jermaine Wattimena, converting consecutive 116, 124 and 144 checkouts in the process.
Smith averaged just shy of 103 to cap off a quality display, which also preserves his hopes of qualifying for the Machineseeker European Championship later this month.
Finals Day at the Swiss Darts Trophy will begin at the earlier time of 11am, before the tournament concludes with the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final in a blockbuster evening session, which gets underway from 5pm.
2026 Swiss Darts Trophy Saturday October 10 Round Two Afternoon Session Krzysztof Ratajski 6-2 Stefan Bellmont Karel Sedlacek 6-4 Wessel Nijman Rob Cross 6-4 Luke Woodhouse Tom Bissell 6-4 Martin Schindler Cristo Reyes 6-4 Ryan Searle Ross Smith 6-4 William O'Connor Bradley Brooks 6-4 Chris Dobey Michael Smith 6-4 Jermaine Wattimena
Evening Session Josh Rock 6-5 Dave Chisnall Jeffrey de Graaf 6-4 Stephen Bunting Dirk van Duijvenbode 6-5 James Wade Jonny Clayton 6-1 Maik Kuivenhoven Mensur Suljovic 6-4 Michael van Gerwen Luke Humphries 6-5 Kevin Doets Gian van Veen 6-0 Niko Springer Damon Heta 6-3 Danny Noppert
Sunday October 11 Afternoon Session (11am) Last 16 Josh Rock vs Karel Sedlacek Jonny Clayton vs Rob Cross Jeffrey De Graaf vs Bradley Brooks Gian van Veen vs Tom Bissell Mensur Suljovic vs Ross Smith Dirk van Duijvenbode vs Michael Smith Damon Heta vs Cristo Reyes Luke Humphries vs Krzysztof Ratajski
Evening Session (5pm) Quarter-Finals Rock/Sedlacek vs Clayton/Cross De Graaf/Brooks vs Van Veen/Bissell Suljovic/R Smith vs Van Duijvenbode/M Smith Heta/Reyes vs Humphries/Ratajski
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