Czech Darts Open Saturday afternoon Round-Up | Gary Anderson and Nathan Aspinall thwarted as big names head out
PDCSaturday, 05 September 2026 at 16:56
The second round has begun at the 2026 Czech Darts Open with two big names being dumped out during the afternoon session in two of the showpiece ties as Gary Anderson and Nathan Aspinall both head out of proceedings.
ADVERTISEMENT
Anderson was facing off against his World Cup teammate in Cameron Menzies. He won through 6-3 in the end. Both hit 180's in leg one. But it was Menzies who broke on double 10. Only for Anderson to come back on double 20 for 1-1.
Anderson hit double eight for 2-1 and Menzies hit double 20 for 2-2. But it was Anderson who pinned double 20 to hit the front again at 3-2. Menzies pinned 58 for 3-3 and he broke for 4-3 with a 74 checkout. A hold on 112 for Menzies who led 5-3 and was looking to break to win.
Menzies broke again this time on double four to claim it 6-3. While Aspinall was soundly beaten by Andrew Gilding. At one point it looked very likely that a whitewash could be on the cards with Gilding having match darts after Aspinall got a sole leg.
But it more just prolonged it more than anything else as Gilding finally fell over the line. Gilding pinned double 20 for 1-0 to open. He then hit 62 to break throw and then the same target for 3-0 to hold. He was on the verge as he broke again for 4-0 on 61 and then held on double five. Aspinall averted the whitewash with a 52 checkout. Gilding missed match darts and Aspinall was back for 5-2 down. He was now throwing for 5-3. But that reprieve has only lasted so long as Gilding hits 122 to thrash Aspinall 6-2.
Mixed fortunes for Dutch stars
For the Dutch stars, it was a pretty poor time to start the session as Krzysztof Ratajski and Danny Noppert shone. But Jermaine Wattimena and Kevin Doets didn't.
Ratajski averaged 101 as he eased past Wattimena 6-2. While Noppert took down an out-of-sorts Doets 6-1. Noppert led 3-1 early breaking on double 10 for the lead after a leg which saw Noppie leave 141 for the nine-darter but he got the break anyway.
ADVERTISEMENT
Double 20 for Noppert who was now two away at 4-1. Noppert broke for 5-1 hitting 136 and was now set to throw for the win. One he then sealed 6-1 to move into the final day.
William O'Connor also shone. He saw off Ryan Searle in a comeback win 6-4. Searle did all the running taking out the opening leg with a 54 checkout. After breaking with that 54 checkout, Searle missed 130 but he came back for 5 after that for 2-0.
Searle went 3-1 up on double 14 but O'Connor hit back to make it 3-2. Searle to throw for 4-2 which he used to hit double 20 and lead further. Double 10 for O'Connor to hold for 4-3. At that point a break would be huge. And lo and behold. Searle missed 127 for a 5-3 lead and he missed further darts at 25 after O'Connor had missed double 20. But O'Connor broke for 4-4 on double five. Suddenly O'Connor was one away on double eight. He went 5-4 up. Completing the turnaround he hit double 16.
Ross Smith continues form.
Ross Smith continued his form from last week as he wiped aside Stephen Burton 6-1 to continue after he won the title in Budapest. He went 1-0 up on double 18. He broke on double eight to make it 2-0. Smith pinned 110 to make it 3-0 and broke again to make it 4-0.
ADVERTISEMENT
He held on double eight for 5-0. Burton finally hit 146 to make it 5-1. But now Smith was aiming to hold for the win. One he took on double four to claim it 6-1. While Keane Barry took down Chris Dobey 6-4 in another surprise victory.
Barry led 2-1 early here against Chris Dobey. He pinned 33 for a 2-1 lead and a break. Barry went 3-1 up on double 10 and then 4-2 up with a 70 checkout but he was broken for 4-4 with double 20. Barry broke back for 5-4 and was set to throw for the win. Barry pinned 64 for 6-4 and sealed the win from there.
Finally the Nijman v Schindler game got moved and it was some delight for Dutch fans as the former won through 6-5 in a decider. It was 1-1 early between Nijman and Schindler as Schindler hit 88 and Nijman 48 for 1-1.
Read also
Schindler was broken on double 16, but he hit back with 104 to make it 2-2. It went to 3-3 as Schindler went 3-2 up on double 20 and Nijman hit double 10 for 3-3.
ADVERTISEMENT
Schindler made his mark with a 170 checkout to make it 4-3 to hold. Albeit despite going one away on 127 for 5-4, a decider was forced and Nijman broke at the last opportunity after Schindler missed 78 for the win.
Samuel GillChief Content Officer
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of DartsNews.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy across professional darts coverage. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces, playing a central role in the development and daily operation of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has extensive experience in darts media and has been closely involved in coverage of the professional darts circuit for several years. Within the UK darts community, he is a recognised figure known for his consistent editorial output and ongoing reporting on major tournaments and developments across the PDC calendar.
In his current role, Samuel works closely with editors and writers to ensure content meets clear journalistic standards, with a focus on source verification, editorial consistency, and timely updates when new, confirmed information becomes available.
claps 1visitors 1
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- I believe he has it in him to qualify for the Worlds as he consistently wins matches, even if it is only one or two at a time, although his recent PC quarter-final run was somewhat encouraging in that regard. I think there is a lot of pressure for him to retire, people in the media accusing him of tarnishing his legacy. I think that is a ridiculous line of thinking. How ungrateful it is to attach terms and conditions to the amazing moments he has provided us over the course of his career. What position are we in to dictate to him how he should manage his career when it is he who achieved those successes in the first place? What's more, this is his life and the passion that sustains it, it is not for us to decide when his career is over when it is he who must bear the genuine ramifications of that decision. Since I'm sure money is not a concern, the only question on which the decision should rest is whether he truly continues to enjoy competing. He has retired once before, but the desire to compete is what brought him back. We see a lot of negative body language and he does genuinely look miserable when he is not playing well, but only he will know when he wakes up the next day whether he wants to go and do it all over again. If he wants to compete, he should, it's as simple as that, this is a decision that should not involve anyone else but him and his family. He should not retire to indulge the whims of the media or the public. What satisfaction would he receive by being forced into retirement? What closure would it bring to such a brilliant career? When Phil Taylor decided to retire, his decision was final and resolute. I believe RvB needs to get to this point himself, no matter how many 70 averages it might take. We see the likes of John Part continue to compete on a regular basis well past his prime, I say more power to him, and who knows, further glory could be around the corner, it's darts after all, you just never know. Sometimes I worry that RvB is acutely aware of the clamour for him to retire and that this pressure may even have an impact on his performances as he begins to question whether there is even a place for him in darts anymore, further compounding his poor form and creating a vicious loop. Perhaps to take his future into his own hands would provide him with a levity and freedom that would lend itself to better performances, not to mention an improved wellbeing. In any case, it is under these conditions that one can clear-headedly and definitively settle an issue so profound as retirement, not when you feel you're being rushed out the door. If his performances can no longer sustain his presence on the tour, so be it; as it stands his card seems safe for this year but is in serious jeopardy next year. He could always allow himself to drop off the tour naturally rather than forfeiting his place in the top 64, this could provide a sense of finality while offering a route back through Q-School if he so desired; after all, he's done it before. In conclusion, I just hope that RvB can play - or not play - for his own sake, rather than anyone else's, so that when the time comes he can be in no doubt as to his decision, leaving no lingering questions, so that he can reflect with no regret or uncertainty on the marvelous career he has had.Deduce635826-09-2026
- Luke Littler has been good for the sport of darts, no question. But he is not above it. For his sake and ours, he needs to be put in his place sometimes, rather than having his every whim catered to. That is not how you build a good person nor a good sporting organisation, and it's beginning to have consequences.Deduce635826-09-2026
- Extremely disappointing decision. It used to be that, along with major events and Euro Tours, the Players Championship series constituted one of three standards against which successful darts players could be measured, one of three challenges every successful darts player should be expected to master to consider themself among the elite. Now they are dead weight in the darting calendar, and player turnout and the standard of competitiveness will reflect that. The truth is that Luke Littler and other big names would rather play lucrative exhibitions than put in the hard graft that being a successful dart player requires. It undermines the authority of the PDC and the game in general. So what do they do about it? Give them exactly what they want. Of course, why wouldn't they? They are their star attractions. It is ironic that an organisation formed in protest by the sport's elite should be undermined and disrespected by their contemporary equivalents, but the PDC had a chance to stand up to them with a firm message: play 2 events all year and expect the final to be played without you. Instead, they caved in. These events will be hardly worth playing anymore and this decision may have grave consequences for the future of floor events at the elite level. Some may say the calendar is overstuffed, yet these elite players have more than enough time to play plenty of exhibitions. The Premier League in particular is gruelling, but busy players are not expected to play every event, they are expected to manage their playing schedule carefully in order to apportion their time and energy appropriately. Clayton and Humphries, for instance, both sit in the top 20 of the Players Championship and European orders of merit, in addition to competing in the Premier League; they have proven it is absolutely possible and this change is an insult to their efforts in effectively managing their calendars. I think we are seeing players who simply think they are too good for Pro Tour events, arrogance which should be punished rather than rewarded as we are seeing here. Furthermore, why should success in Euro Tours qualify you for the Players Championship Final? The PDC are blurring the lines between those three disciplines of darting excellence, and in so doing destabilising the very foundations upon which the organisation and its success is built. Some may say I'm overreacting, but this, in addition to the PDC's subservience and snivelling obsequiousness toward their biggest assets, makes me fear for the future of professional darts.Deduce635826-09-2026
- I guess this will mean the top players will turn up even less? Taken all the excitement of qualifying away I think. Wish they made it top 32 to qualify and the finals to last all week.Baphomet26-09-2026
- Great article - but not written by this site. It's taken wholesale from last Sunday's Observer with this interview published online on Saturday.Scoobedybop22-09-2026
- Such sad and pathetic little losers giving abuse to young woman for any reason, let alone who she is in a relationship with. Go Beau! An absolute star and comes across as a genuinely nice and kind person. Wish her nothing but the best.BandB22-09-2026
- I wouldn't mind if he quit now to be honest. He's not bigger than darts. Let's face it without darts he'd just be a normal fat gamer kid.medinabello22-09-2026
- You know,I said this,in a sentence,not 5 paragraphs!!rick6721-09-2026
- Oh dear,he lost. Well any competitive sport runs the risk of defeat. He is, currently,his own worst enemy. Wind the crowd up,and you get it back bigger. Put your dummy in kidrick6721-09-2026
- Does an exhibition count in the clean sweep though?BandB21-09-2026
Loading