"He might not become a Wessel Nijman, but I see him in the top 32 in one to two years" : Robert Marijanovic and Gabriel Clemens heap praise on Tom Sykes’ sensational run

PDC
Wednesday, 01 July 2026 at 17:36
Marijanovic_Clemens
Tom Sykes was the big surprise of the Slovak Darts Open 2026Gabriel Clemens, Robert Marijanovic, and Marcel Althaus agreed on that in the latest episode of the podcast “Darts auf die 1”. While Wessel Nijman celebrated the tournament win, the Englishman stole the weekend’s headlines by reaching the semi-finals on his very first European Tour appearance. Robert Marijanovic, in particular, even believes the 33-year-old can break into the world’s top 32 in the future.
ADVERTISEMENT
Sykes made an immediate statement on his European Tour debut. After wins over Niko Springer (6-2), Martin Schindler (6-5), Cameron Menzies (6-4), and Jermaine Wattimena (6-2), the Englishman reached the last four at the first attempt. His impressive run ended there with a 2-7 defeat against Rob Cross.

Clemens and Marijanovic impressed by Sykes’ debut

For Gabriel Clemens, Sykes provided the story of the weekend: “The surprise in Slovakia was of course Tom Sykes. Made his debut, played brutally well. Unfortunately, he also knocked both Germans out of the tournament.”
Tom Sykes celebrates.
Tom Sykes reached the semi-finals on his European Tour debut – for Robert Marijanovic, a future candidate for the world’s top 32.
Robert Marijanovic was also impressed by the Englishman’s performances. The former Tour Card holder recalled that Sykes had already made a name for himself in recent years in the MODUS Super Series.
“Tom Sykes played the MODUS Super Series for a year or two, and he always played well there. I think he’s a relatively unobtrusive guy, but with an extremely high recognition factor – clearly because of the hair color. Also in terms of build, small and slim.”
ADVERTISEMENT
Above all, Marijanovic is optimistic about the Englishman’s development. “If he keeps playing like this – and his development isn’t over yet, it keeps going, he keeps getting better – then he might not become a Wessel Nijman, but I see him in the top 32 in one to two years. He really just played well.”

“That impressed me”

Gabriel Clemens, however, was not yet ready to fully endorse that prediction. “Well, talking about the top 32 after one tournament, I don’t know…” Marijanovic countered that it wasn’t just the results, but especially the manner of the performance that impressed him.
“But Gaga, seriously now: You make your European Tour debut, you get to the semi-finals, and you also play really well while doing it. That’s something special, that’s a gift, in my view. Most players are nervous, new tournament, new format, you’re not fully familiar with everything yet. And he just plays his level. So that impressed me.”
Clemens also expressly highlighted the Englishman’s performance again, but added that not every match was at the highest level.
ADVERTISEMENT
“He really played a fantastic tournament. Although you also have to say the quarter-final, I think, wasn’t quite as good, not so high quality. But otherwise it was really strong what he produced, and he kept his nerve – especially against Martin.”

Marijanovic makes a bold prediction

For Sykes, the semi-final is another milestone in an already strong first year as a PDC professional. The Englishman secured a Tour Card for the first time at the start of the season and, after the first six months, has already banked £41,750 in prize money on the PDC Order of Merit. That currently puts him at No. 82 in the world rankings.
Marijanovic even expects Sykes to more than double that tally by the end of the year.
ADVERTISEMENT
“I’ll make the prediction that at the end of the year, so after the Worlds, he’ll have a six-figure sum on the Order of Merit, so over £100,000. Which might still not be enough for a top-64 spot. That’s not a problem in the first year, but it’s already crazy that £100,000 probably won’t be enough after the next Worlds to keep your Tour Card. So you’ve got a doctor’s salary and still can’t continue working in your job.”
claps 0visitors 0
loading

Just in

Popular news

Latest comments

Loading