''I don't know what I was doing, that's just not allowed'' - Van Gerwen reacts after win over Dolan to huge collapse in fifth set

Michael van Gerwen fulfilled his role as favorite in his match in the third round of the PDC World Darts Championship against Brendan Dolan, but it was by no means easy. In the end, "Mighty Mike" had to pull out all the stops to avoid a deciding set.

Dolan won the first set, but then Van Gerwen put things right by taking nine of the 10 subsequent legs. It allowed the 35-year-old to go into the break with a 3-1 lead after the fourth set.

Van Gerwen then could not finish it off in the fifth set, allowing Dolan to reduce the difference to a one-set deficit. The Northern Irishman even had a chance to force a final set, but missed his chance on the bullseye. Van Gerwen then finished the job via double 8.

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The three-time world champion realized afterwards that he could have made it a lot easier on himself against Dolan. "I wasn't steady enough, it could have been better in a lot of areas," the world number three commented afterwards to Viaplay.

Especially in the fifth set, the decline was great. In the fourth set, Van Gerwen still had a set average of 118.7. That dropped to just 84 in the fifth set. That made "Mighty Mike" bitter. "Especially set five ... I don't know what I was doing there, but that's just not allowed."

Van Gerwen then recovered in the sixth set, avoiding bigger problems. "My preparation didn't go as well as I wanted," he acknowledged. Van Gerwen believes much more is still possible in London. "Then I left a lot of things out. Can you imagine if I do throw a 100 percent good match. I know it's in there, only I have to show it. At phases I played a good match, but here and there it can still be polished."

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