Price glad to see Van Gerwen return to form at Premier League Darts: "I love to see Michael win, the beast is back"

Gerwyn Price began his UK Open campaign with a commanding win over Krzysztof Ratajski but for 'The Iceman', it was all about getting through the first hurdle and starting his tournament with a win.

"It was one of those games I just had to win and get through. I couldn't get any fluency, I couldn't get any momentum. It was a tough game, I know what to expect with Krzysztof and I knew that it was going to be one of those games but at the end of the day, a W is all I was after and that's what I've got," said Price to Online Darts.

His World Number One spot is likely to go if he doesn't reach the final and he believes that Wright deserves to reach the top.

"I haven't done my bit, I haven't got to the final, even if Peter loses and I don't get to the final, he still gets number one but I know in his head, he doesn't want to win it that way. I know he wants to win a tournament and become World Number One, he deserves it, he's a great player. Hopefully I can win this one and fend him off for a little bit more."

From a potential former World Number One to another, Michael van Gerwen's downturn in form has been heavily storied but he produced one of his best runs in a long time to win in Exeter at the Premier League.

For Price, he still sees Van Gerwen as one of the best players in the world and is glad to see 'the beast' back on form.

"I love to see Michael win, because at one stage yeah he was the best player in the world and everyone is chasing him then he sort of slipped off a bit. He's still playing well but he's not had any luck and you can see what he can produce when he does play well."

"People are saying that me and Peter are the biggest rivals and the top two in the world at the minute but Michael's right up there and it only takes one game like that to spark it off but I think the beast is back."