Michael van Gerwen overcomes spirited Josh Rock to set up semifinal with Ross Smith at Hungarian Darts Trophy 2024

Michael van Gerwen has secured a place in the last four at the Hungarian Darts Trophy. Mighty Mike defeated Josh Rock (6-4) in the last eight.

The first four legs went with the darts. Rock kept his own legs with a 15-darter and a 96 finish. Van Gerwen countered with a 16-darter and a 127 finish to take a 2-2 lead. In the fifth leg came Rock's first slip. He missed two doubles to keep his leg and was broken by Van Gerwen, who hit the double 12. With a 17-darter, the 35-year-old from the Netherlands then doubled the lead to 4-2.

The next three legs also went with the darts, allowing Van Gerwen to throw for the match at a score of 5-4. He missed his first matchdart on the bullseye, after which he saw Rock miss the double for a 150 finish. Van Gerwen then hit the second matchdart.

A reunion awaits in the semifinals with Ross Smith, who has already beaten Van Gerwen twice on the Euro Tour this year. Smith won 6-5 over Stephen Bunting in his quarterfinal. Smith gained a 4-3 lead against Bunting by breaking 'The Bullet' in the seventh leg with a 142 finish. That was followed by a 70 checkout to extend the lead to 5-3.

Bunting refused to throw in the towel and came back to 5-5 with a 64 finish and a 14-darter. Bunting got to start the final leg, but struggled to get going scoring. Smith quickly took distance and eventually secured victory with a 17-darter.