Andrew Gilding whitewashed by Danny Noppert as Nathan Aspinall comes through Ryan Searle test in European Championship opener

Danny Noppert has made an excellent start to the European Championship. 'The Freeze' left Andrew Gilding completely defenseless in the first round of the tournament in Dortmund.

It was a duel between the last two UK Open champions. Noppert won the tournament in 2022, while Gilding surprisingly won the UK Open this season. Moreover, they also met last year in the first round of the European Championship and also then the Dutchman won.

Noppert surged ahead with a 14-darter, 138 finish and a 12-darter for a 3-0 lead. An 11-darter followed that, while his average meanwhile was well over 110. However, he could not maintain that level.

An 18-darter proved sufficient for the darter from Joure to take the fifth leg, after which he put a 6-0 final score on the scoreboard with a 15-darter. Noppert's reporting figures were more than excellent; an average of 106 and a finish percentage of 75 percent.

Following Noppert, World Matchplay champion Nathan Aspinall also managed to qualify for the second round of the European Championship. The Asp' defeated Ryan Searle.

After the first two legs went with darts, Aspinall threw a 74 finish and a 14-darter to lead 3-1. A 16-darter then brought the score to 4-1. Searle returned to 4-3 via an 11-darter and a 120 checkout, but then surrendered his own leg. Aspinall broke him again with a 14-darter for 5-3 and then closed out the match in fine fashion with a 12-darter.