Niels Zonneveld won his first senior PDC title with an 8-5 victory over Danny Noppert in the Dutch Darts Championship final on Sunday. An entertaining all-Dutch final in Maastricht saw a tight contest with the score locked at 2-2 before Zonneveld won three successive legs to pull away. Noppert responded to close the gap to 5-4 but Zonneveld regained control and won back-to-back legs - including a checkout of 157 - to earn a 7-4 lead.
Despite a tough battle against Noppert, Zonneveld was then able to see the match out with a 81 checkout, hitting double three to seal the title. The 28-year-old's route to the final saw him beat Stephen Bunting 7-4 in the semi-finals and that match came following a stunning comeback with a final-leg 6-5 victory in the last eight. Up against Wessel Nijman, Zonneveld recovered from trailing 5-3 to level at 5-5 and was able to pounce after his fellow Dutchman missed a match dart.
Noppert also impressed in his run to the final, claiming a 7-5 win over compatriot Gian van Veen in the semi-finals to book his place in the tournament's showpiece. It followed a comfortable quarter-final showing from Noppert, who recorded another impressive average on his way to reaching the last four, registering 113.42 in his 6-2 win over Luke Woodhouse. In the quarter-finals, Bunting clinched a 6-3 win over Damon Heta and hit a 148 checkout, while Van Veen beat Ryan Searle 6-3.
Earlier on Sunday, round three provided some upsets as Gerwyn Price was beaten 6-4 by Zonneveld and Nathan Aspinall was thumped 6-1 by Bunting. Round threeGian van Veen 6-1 Brendan DolanRyan Searle 6-4 Ross SmithWilliam O'Connor 4-6 Luke WoodhouseDanny Noppert 6-3 Jermaine WattimenaGerwyn Price 4-6 Niels ZonneveldWessel Nijman 6-3 Cristo ReyesDamon Heta 6-4 Martin SchindlerStephen Bunting 6-1 Nathan Aspinall Quarter-finalsDanny Noppert 6-2 Luke WoodhouseGian van Veen 6-3 Ryan SearleNiels Zonneveld 6-5 Wessel NijmanStephen Bunting 6-3 Damon Heta Semi-FinalsDanny Noppert 7-5 Gian van VeenNiels Zonneveld 7-4 Stephen Bunting Sky Sports is the home of darts with the Grand Slam of Darts (November 14-22) and World Darts Championship (December 11-January 3) live. Stream darts and more through NOW.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
