It’s not often you hear this but Michael van Gerwen was stunned today by Rob Cross in the last 16 of the 2017 European Darts Open in Leverkusen. Van Gerwen who has an amazing winning record on the European tour was beaten 6-2.
The match was of a high standard and Rob Cross started the match well, winning the opening leg in 13 darts and then doubled his lead when he broke Van Gerwen’s throw with a 15 darter which included a maximum and a classy 108 check out.
Michael van Gerwen put his foot on the gas and levelled the match as he rolled off two straight 12 dart legs of his own. However, Rob Cross hit back as he edged back in front with a 12 darter of his own and then broke Van Gerwens throw in the next leg with a 13 darter to regain his two leg cushion.
An upset was on the cards as Van Gerwen started to miss doubles as Cross held his throw for 5-2 and then pulled off a remarkable and well deserved victory, probably the best of his career, as he broke Van Gerwen’s throw once again with another solid 15 darter and 108 checkout to win 6-2.
It’s was a high quality contest with both players averaging over 100 and hitting 5 180s between them Cross hitting 4 of them. Cross also had a 50% checkout percentage and hit 3 ton+ checkouts on his way to a fantastic win over the world number 1.
Daily Dose of Dalton 