"He said, "We're playing tomorrow," and I was like, "Oops, sorry!": Gian van Veen didn't recognise opponent Fred Krueger at pre-US Darts Masters event

Gian van Veen admitted he didn't know who his opponent Fred Krueger was as he dodged a Nightmare on Elm Street and instead was the master in Manhattan as he won through 6-1 at the US Darts Masters in New York.

Van Veen said previously that he'd only been in New York as a lay-over and so making his debut in such an event in such an iconic venue is a lot to take in. From the walking to the stage through the crowd ala the Circus Tavern to having to show ID at all points of the venue to watertight security, Van Veen is having some experience in the BIg Apple.

"The walk-on itself was something different. It's not something we've done before, so for me as a player it was really unique," he said to Online Darts in New York.

"Even walking onto the stage, there were fans at the front giving me handshakes and fist bumps. It was something special.

"Then, walking into Madison Square Garden this afternoon to prepare for the match, you realise it's still Madison Square Garden. It's fantastic to be here."

"As I said, it's an iconic venue and it doesn't get much better than this. As soon as you walk in, you realise how big an arena it is. There was security everywhere and I even had to show my ID just to get into the building. It's different to all the other venues and it's a privilege to be here.

As ever though it is about getting that first game out of the way and for Van Veen, he added that he was enjoying himself in New York over practicing hence the rust but also it is very much not losing in the first round as one of the picked PDC representatives.

"After Slovakia I didn't touch a dart for a couple of days. I was just enjoying my time here, so I felt a little bit rusty today. That's part of the game and I'm happy with a 6-1 win. It wasn't my prettiest performance, but I'm just happy to get the job done.

"The first game is always difficult because, as one of the eight PDC representatives, you want to perform well and win your opening match. That's what I did today and I think that's the most important thing. Tomorrow we'll see what happens."

Josh Rock was the only one to lose to a North American player albeit a quality operator in Jim Long and Van Veen said there is always that air of banter in the practice room about trying not to lose to one of the other representatives.

"Especially if you're first on, you don't want to be the one who loses in the opening match. If all eight PDC players win, then there's nothing to say. But if one of them loses, you're definitely going to hear about it the next time you see the others.

"There's always a little bit of extra pressure, not just because of the players around you, but because you've been invited here as well. Luckily, I got the job done today."

Van Veen in facing Krueger said that hilariously he met him at the Meet and Greet the day before and didn't know who he was. "He did himself proud, for sure. Like you said, I knew seven of the eight North American players in the draw, but I didn't know him.

"Even yesterday at the meet and greet he was standing right in front of me and I didn't recognise him. Then he said, "We're playing tomorrow," and I was like, "Oops, sorry!" But he played really well. I don't think the 6-1 scoreline reflected the game. He missed a few doubles and it could easily have been 6-3 or maybe even 6-4. He can definitely look back on it as a very positive debut."

Surprisingly Krueger was booed during the walk-on and Van Veen said that no doubt there were England fans in the crowd albeit that he was semi puzzled that they then switched up. "England are playing tomorrow, so there are probably a lot of England fans in the crowd.

"Then, as soon as the match started, everyone was shouting "USA", so I thought, "Okay, we're definitely in the United States! With England playing tomorrow, maybe it was a little bit expected."

Netherlands won 3-1 in the World Cup and Van Veen was very much wanting to quickly get his media commitments done to watch his country finish the job against Tunisia.

"Well, the Netherlands are playing now, so hopefully we can get this finished quickly and I can watch the second half. I've been told we're 2-0 up, so hopefully everything's okay!

"Tonight I'll just relax, watch the football—or soccer, as you would say—and tomorrow will be another relaxed day before getting ready for the evening session."

But for Van Veen he is in the lucky position he admits to play in these events and get the chance to do so and said that it is both business and pleasure in reality.

"To get the invitations from the PDC to represent our sport in all these different countries is brilliant. Bahrain was great, Saudi Arabia was great, Copenhagen was really good and now we're here in New York.

"You've seen it yourself tonight—a sold-out crowd, everyone getting behind the darts, singing "Stand up if you love the darts." It's been fantastic and I'm just glad to be here.

"During the day you know you've got a match in the evening, but you also want to enjoy the city. The weather's beautiful here in New York, so I've been walking around, going to Times Square and doing a little bit of football shirt shopping, as I normally do. But once the evening comes, it's game on.

"When you're on that stage, it doesn't matter whether you're in New York, Wigan, Barnsley or Amsterdam. You just want to perform and win your matches. That was the job tonight and hopefully it'll be the same again tomorrow."