Michael van Gerwen: Defending Masters champion

Masters Darts: Michael van Gerwen eager to lay down an early marker for the new season

By Sporting Life

Darts

Fri February 01, 2019 · 7y ago

Michael van Gerwen is determined to win a fifth successive BetVictor Masters title this weekend as he bids to lay down another ominous marker ahead of the new season.

The opening televised event of the year, which will be screened live on ITV4 from February 1-3, sees 16 of the top PDC stars battling it out for the £60,000 top prize at the Marshall Arena, Milton Keynes.

MVG's rival in chief Gary Anderson, who he defeated en route to winning his third world title at Alexandra Palace last month, is absent with a back injury but the likes of Rob Cross, Michael Smith and Peter Wright are among the star-studded line-up.

Van Gerwen, who has won 16 Masters matches in a row since 2015, said: "I’m looking forward to getting back on stage as the World Champion. It’s been a nice month to enjoy but now it is back to business and The Masters is the start of a new year for darts.

The moment Michael van Gerwen clinched a fourth successive @Unibet Masters title... #Unibet180 pic.twitter.com/jGp3gPaskD
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) January 28, 2018

"I have done really well there in the last few years and I’m really confident and determined to win it again. It sends out a message that I’m ready from the very start of the year and that is important to me."

The Dutchman's first match is against Jonny Clayton, who he defeated in the Grand Slam of Darts quarter-finals but only after losing a group stage meeting between the pair.

He said: "I know not to take any opponent for granted and playing Jonny Clayton in the first round gives me lost of focus because we have had some great games.

"He’s done very well and deserves to be in the top 16 and a tournament like this you only have the very best players in the world so you can’t afford to make mistakes.”

💚💪🏆 Michael van Gerwen has won 117 titles including three world titles and 33 of the big PDC majors.

😲 All by the age of just 29.

🤔 This dominance in a sport with so many dedicated and talented players is unfathomable. So how does @MvG180 do it?https://t.co/Kr5x5VvUel
— Sporting Life (@SportingLife) January 3, 2019

Welshman Clayton lifted the Austrian Darts Open trophy in 2018 to back up his run to the final of the 2017 Players Championship Finals, and those success has seen him elevated into the sport's elite top 16 for the first time in his career.

"It’s been a great couple of years for me, winning my first PDC title on stage was incredible," said Clayton.

"If I carry playing the way I have been then I should cement my place in the top 16 and that is something to be proud of. There are also lots of other opportunities that come with that and it would be huge for my career."

Clayton is one of three Masters debutants at The Marshall Arena, alongside world number 13 Darren Webster and European Championship semi-finalist Joe Cullen.

Cullen missed match darts against Anderson in last year's World Matchplay quarter-final and also in his European Championship semi-final against Simon Whitlock, but is now eager to leave those near-misses behind him as he prepares to take on Rob Cross on Saturday.

"I think Rob will be up for it, especially after I came back from 6-1 down to beat him in the European Championship," said Yorkshireman Cullen.

"He seemed to be cruising in that one, so that was a great win for me but he'll be keen to get his own back.

"Maybe we'll be a little bit rusty early doors but once we settle down it should be another good match which I'm really looking forward to.

"I'm a big fan of The Masters event as a concept because I grew up watching the snooker equivalent. It sees the elite of the sport going head-to-head so if you're in it then you know you're heading in the right direction."

Friday's opening night kicks off with Players Champion Daryl Gurney taking on four-time televised finalist Dave Chisnall, before World Matchplay finalist Mensur Suljovic meets Australia's Simon Whitlock.

Stephen Bunting, who replaced Anderson, faces Webster in the third game of the evening, before the meeting between Van Gerwen and Clayton closes the show on night one.

Grand Slam of Darts winner Gerwyn Price faces European champion James Wade in the first match of Saturday night, before Cross plays Cullen.

World Championship runner-up Michael Smith comes up against world number 11 Ian White, before round one concludes with a mouth-watering tie between Peter Wright and Adrian Lewis.

Friday and Saturday's winners will progress to Sunday's decisive final day which will see the afternoon session's quarter-finals followed by the semi-finals and final in the evening session.