"Even a few hours after the match he was still not approachable" - Van der Voort reveals Van Barneveld's fury after missing out on Grand Slam of Darts

At the Grand Slam of Darts, Raymond van Barneveld reached the semifinals in 2022 and as such, had plenty to defend in the Order of Merit this time around. However, 'Barney' was defeated in the qualifying tournament by Mickey Mansell and failed to even qualify for this year's edition and will drop several places in the world rankings. According to eyewitness Vincent van der Voort, Van Barneveld did not react well.

Van Barneveld was bitterly disappointed afterwards. "Raymond wasn't even approachable for a few hours after the match. He was still feeling so bad, there was nothing more to do with that," Vincent van der Voort said in the podcast'Darts Draait Door'.

Van der Voort, who himself also participated in the qualifying tournament in Leicester and also failed to qualify, drove to the airport together with Dirk van Duijvenbode (he also failed to qualify) and Van Barneveld. "On the way I chatted with Dirk, because Raymond didn't say much. But that also shows his mentality. He is still hungry to perform and hungry to prove. That he feels so bad about it shows how much he still wants to."  

Van Barneveld recently indicated that he wants to continue as a professional until he is 60. Van der Voort does expect that his 57-year-old friend wants to be seen off in a grand way. "He is someone who is sensitive to that," he said. "Raymond was once totally mad at the PDC when he had to throw in the Premier League Darts one time on his birthday. Because they hadn't arranged a cake for him. Van Barneveld is going to be fine with that."

The Grand Slam of Darts gets underway this Saturday. In Wolverhampton, Michael van Gerwen, Danny Noppert, Gian van Veen, Jermaine Wattimena, Wessel Nijman and Noa-Lynn van Leuven will give the Dutch a strong representation despite the absence of the likes of Van der Voort, Van Barneveld and Van Duijvenbode.