Michael van Gerwen refuses to call Luke Humphries the best: ''He still has to beat me first''

Michael van Gerwen qualified for the quarterfinals at the Players Championship Finals on Saturday night. It was not as eye-catching as earlier in the day (6-1 against Ross Smith with 118 average) against Mario Vandenbogaerde, but nevertheless 'Mighty Mike' won 10-6 over the Belgian.

''Different players, different gams. You can't compare them,'' the Dutchman stated afterwards in conversation with Online Darts. ''I won both of them and I think that's the most important thing. Going through to the quarters, it gives me an extra boost and I feel good."

One possible reason for Van Gerwen's lesser match was Vandenbogaerde's slow pace. The Belgian took more than 20 seconds to complete a turn. ''He's quite a slow player. He's a nice man, but also a bit boring if you know what I mean,'' Van Gerwen said about that. ''It's even more important that you have tonwin games like these."

In the final, Van Gerwen and Luke Humphries could just happen to face each other. 'Cool Hand Luke' is the man in form after titles at the World Grand Prix and Grand Slam of Darts in the fall. According to many, Humphries is currently the best dart player in the world, but Van Gerwen certainly won't budge on that.

''He's playing some fantastic darts but I'll never admit he's the best player because he still has to beat me first," Van Gerwen concluded with a grin.