Van Gerwen suggests he deserved more respect from Taylor: 'He is the greatest, but I'm the best darts player'

Michael van Gerwen played his last official match against darts legend Phil Taylor one year ago. The two darts gigants met in the semi-finals of the Grand Slam of Darts in 2017.

The world number one in this game with a convincing 16-8 victory against Taylor. Almost one year later, the 29-year-old Dutchman looked back on his battle with 'The Power'. ''He was phenomenal as a darts player. But how he behaved during his last season, does not deserve an award'', said the two-time world champion in a conversation with the PDC. ''I was much better then him in the last two years and that was hard to accept for him. He is the greatest darts player ever, but I'm the best. I have always given him a lot of respect, but perhaps I deserved more respect from him.'' Van Gerwen also spoke about his life as a father. 'Mighty Mike' and his wife Daphne received their first child in August 2017; daughter Zoë. Van Gerwen's life has changed since that moment. ''She is the biggest trophy I have. I love my family very much, but I also love darts. So I have to find a good combination between these two. That takes time, but I have won nineteen tournaments so far this year, that is not bad!''

Photo: Lawrence Lustig/PDC