DESTINY FOR DE DECKER! 🏆🇧🇪 MIKE DE DECKER WINS THE WORLD GRAND PRIX! The Belgian produces the performance of his life to defeat Luke Humphries 6-4 in one of the best double-start finals of all-time! 📺 bit.ly/WGP24Live #WGPDarts | Final
"He's got the bottle, he's got the composure, he's got the game!" - Wayne Mardle backs Mike De Decker for continued success after Grand Prix heroics
PDCTuesday, 15 October 2024 at 10:00
Mike De Decker won the World Grand Prix last Sunday by defeating Luke Humphries 6-4 in the final. On Sky Sports, ex-pro turned expert analyst Wayne Mardle looked back on the 28-year-old Belgian's first major title. Mardle predicts a great future for De Decker, who he says has everything he needs to make it at the top.
Mardle especially sees Decker's match in the second round as a tipping point. "The Gary Anderson game proved something to himself because he actually said 'I thought Gary was going to beat me'. He absolutely railroaded him. He was better than Gary and he was better than Luke Humphries in a game that went to 45 legs of darts," Hawaii 501 explains. "He's got the bottle, he's got the composure, he's got the game!"
Mike De Decker shows off his World Grand Prix trophy
Decker came to the World Grand Prix with little experience in the majors, but Mardle saw that it was no obstacle on his way to success. "If you're good enough then experience doesn't matter. He had no experience in quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals but he was good enough," Mardle assesses warmly. "I'm so pleased for him. It's another new winner and there are players on the tour thinking 'Mike De Decker has won a major. I maybe beat him last week, why can't I win a major? Well, you've got to do it when it counts and this is when it counts."
Given the fact that De Decker started the tournament as a 150-1 outsider with some bookmakers, Mardle also noted how this win continues to prove the incredible strength in depth in today's game and in the strong field of participants at the 2024 World Grand Prix. "Astonishing from someone who came into this as an outsider but someone who has won on tour. There's 28 winners on tour in this event out of 32. They're all world-class. What a great story for darts as well."
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- @UndartedWaters I totally agree with your thoughts! I totally respect Kirk but in this instance I was disappointed with his lack of crowd control. I even turned to my husband and said "Could you imagine this happening if Russ Bray was the referee tonight? At least there would have been a crowd admonishment- Ladies and Gentleman please." I so felt for Mike DeDecker...MamaVenus15-11-2024
- Many fans had a sour taste in their mouth by the end of this match. Mike was cruising to victory, playing beautiful darts, when the whistling started in earnest, particularly on his doubles. You could see in Mike's face that it was really affecting his concentration. The referee should have asked for order, just to show that the whistling is unacceptable, and Luke Littler could also have done his part to quieten down the crowd instead of "taking full advantage.:" I put that down to his age though. He needs some good advice on this from his management team and/or more seasoned players. It's got to be about who's best on the night, not who is being harassed by the crowd. Luke Littler played well to get back into the game and win, but it was a hollow victory. If he goes on to win the tournament, that triumph too will be tainted because of this match.
UndartedWaters15-11-2024 - Agree. Van der voort will be the one taking a break when he loses his tour card. Everyone saying about how bad Wright's last 18 months have been, and in that time he's won several Euro tours and the European Championships.Matilda6215-11-2024
- When Littler has at least five ranking Majors he’s in the discussion, until then, forget it.Mysstree14-11-2024
- This is the difference between other players and Phil Taylor. Phil would be completely motivated even before his walk on and didn't need anything else to do so.richieburnettrocks14-11-2024