Kist and Noppert to battle it out in double Dutch final at Players Championship 22
PDCWednesday, 27 September 2023 at 18:55
A Dutchman will win the 22nd Players Championship tournament of the season, as Christian Kist and Danny Noppert have managed to reach the final. The final battle between the two Dutchmen is later in the evening.
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In the first semifinal Kist convincingly defeated Damon Heta, who is seeded first in Barnsley. The first leg went to Heta with an 85 finish, but after that Kist took a 4-1 lead thanks to 74 and 76 check-outs. Heta posted a rebreak in the sixth leg, but Kist immediately broke him back with a 17-darter. With a 58 finish and a 13-darter, Kist then put a 7-2 final score on the scoreboard.
Noppert won easily over reigning world champion Michael Smith. The difference in the averages was huge. An average of 102.34 for Noppert, compared to only 86.05 for Smith and that led to a resounding 7-1 victory for the darter from Joure. Through an 11-darter and two 14-darters the first six legs all went to Noppert. Smith then saved the honor with a 15-darter, before Noppert decided the match with a 13-darter.
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Players Championship 22
Last 16
Damon Heta (91.08) 6 | 4 (85.76) Nathan Aspinall
Raymond van Barneveld (92.72) 6 | 5 (90.76) Dimitri Van den Bergh
Christian Kist (100.68) 6 | 4 (106.59) Stephen Bunting
Kevin Doets (94.40) 6 | 4 (92.56) Michael van Gerwen
James Wade (101.38) 6 | 5 (96.10) Jules van Dongen
Danny Noppert (103.75) 6 | 5 (103.62) Steve Lennon
Gary Anderson (107.36) 6 | 0 (96.22) Ricardo Pietreczko
Michael Smith (85.47) 6 | 5 (85.85) Ian White
Quarterfinals
Damon Heta (93.43) 6 | 5 (87.25) Raymond van Barneveld
Christian Kist (101.20) 6 | 4 (91.84) Kevin Doets
Danny Noppert (93.84) 6 | 4 (92.68) James Wade
Michael Smith (99.80) 6 | 5 (109.31) Gary Anderson
Semi-final
Christian Kist (93.92) 7 | 2 (88.36) Damon Heta
Danny Noppert (102.34) 7 | 1 (86.05) Michael Smith
Final
Christian Kist - | - Danny Noppert
Kieran WoodDarts Journalist
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He contributes to DartsNews.com, where he covers professional darts through news, match reports, analysis, and live coverage across the PDC calendar and major tournaments.
A key part of his work is on-site reporting from leading events. Kieran has covered the PDC World Darts Championship in person, reporting daily from the venue and providing first-hand insight from the tournament. During his coverage, he has conducted interviews with leading players including Luke Littler, Luke Humphries, and Gerwyn Price.
He is also one of the leading voices of the English-language Dartsnews Podcast, contributing regular analysis and discussion on developments across the professional darts circuit.
In his reporting, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles when new, verified information becomes available.
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