"I am not the favourite for this tournament" - Michael van Gerwen remains realistic when assessing title defence in Amsterdam

Six-time World Series of Darts Finals champion Michael van Gerwen is back in front of a home crowd ready to defend his title. While in a familiar position as the number one seed, his form on the big stage has left many to fear the worst as he looks to turn his form around ahead of a crucial part of the season.

The Dutchman’s form on the World Series of Darts circuit this year has been very promising and productive, thus earning him the number one seed for the tournament in Amsterdam.

He may have only competed in three events, with the competitions in New York, Auckland and Wollongong skipped, but titles in Bahrain and Copenhagen sandwiched a final defeat in the inaugural Saudi Darts Masters against Luke Littler, the player he defeated this time last year in the final.

Many believed that his title triumph would have given him the necessary boost to find his old self on the oche, but that has not been the case with ‘The Green Machine’ still not being able to find his best form. While there are flashes from time to time, consistency has not been his friend and could prove to be detrimental in this event.

It is not normal that van Gerwen goes into a tournament as the underdog. The usually confident darter admitted that fact when speaking ahead of the competition. "It is always nice to go into a tournament as the number 1 seed," he told AD. "I have done that so many times. But I am not the favourite for this tournament, and that also puts me in an underdog position. I hope to be able to show some great things from there."

Success on home soil will do nothing about the perilous ranking situation he has found himself in. Falling to his lowest ranking since 2013, the 37-year-old could even drop outside the top 20 if things do not go his way. With no ranking money on offer at the World Series of Darts Finals, it is still a chance to get some much-need confidence back to a realistic van Gerwen.

"I think that's a very simplistic view," he commented. "You just know that if you have a bad year, you're going to plummet in the world rankings. That's not rocket science."

Once the performances come good, then the rest will take care of itself according to van Gerwen. "If you play good matches and keep doing so continuously, the performances will come naturally," Van Gerwen knows. Of course, there are also many good players at this tournament who can throw an average of 100 very easily. But I am mentally strong enough to pull that off as well. I am really going to enjoy myself and try to play my own game."

Van Gerwen, among a number of darters, has made the decision to indulge in a healthier lifestyle, transforming himself with a significant weight loss. "I've mainly started eating a bit healthier and exercising a bit more," he explained.

Unlike others, van Gerwen does not believe it has affected his form. "I wouldn't dare say that yet, and actually, it doesn't interest me that much," he admitted.

“If you look purely at my performances from last year, they weren't always that good. And I'm not throwing any worse now than last year. So I think it has worked in a positive way. I also feel much better as a person now. I feel more comfortable in my own skin, and the rest comes naturally from there.”

The work has been put in with the sole motive to be back challenging among the elite once more. "I train hard every day and put a lot of time into it, because I think that is very important. It takes some time, but it will pay off 100 percent. I am very sure of that."

Van Gerwen was supposed to take on the Philippines thrower Lourence Ilagan, but visa issues cancelled that prospect. Instead, he has the 2017 semi-finalist Daryl Gurney to contend with. A tricky test awaits the winner in the form of either Ross Smith or Kevin Doets, while Stephen Bunting is the other seed in van Gerwen’s quarter of the draw.