Danny Noppert made an excellent start to the Austrian Darts Open on Saturday afternoon. After a bye in the first round, 'The Freeze' recorded a convincing 6-3 victory over Wessel Nijman in the second round.
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Noppert had a perfect start to the match by opening with a 180, before winning the first leg with a 13-darter. Nijman then made it 1-1 with a 15-darter, before Noppert started the third leg with another 180. He followed the trend of the first leg and managed to win the leg with a 13-darter.
The lead was then doubled after Nijman was not out in five darts. A 14-darter made it 3-1 before Noppert himself surrendered his own leg. Via double 8, Nijman closed to 3-2. It then became 3-3 as Nijman hit a 15-darter in the sixth leg.
Noppert then looked set to break, but after a missed break opportunity from Nijman, the darter from Joure saved himself with a 100 finish. After that 'The Freeze' himself broke the deadlock with a 15 darter in Nijman's leg. The latter had two more chances to extend the match, but he failed on double 16. Noppert then decided the match with a 16-darter. He eventually recorded an excellent average of 104.03 with a finishing percentage of 60 percent.
Krzysztof Ratajski managed to win a match on the European Tour for the first time this season. After four consecutive defeats, he defeated Dom Taylor 6-2. With this, the Pole finally earned his first prize money for the Euro Tour Order of Merit.
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NOPPERT BEATS NIJMAN! 🇳🇱
Danny Noppert wins a high-quality all-Dutch affair against Wessel Nijman, averaging 104 to book his place in the last 16!
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