Schedule Friday night Baltic Sea Darts Open: evening session with Gurney, Cullen and Van Barneveld in action

On Friday evening, July 11, the final matches in the first round of the Baltic Sea Darts Open 2025 are scheduled in Kiel.

It is the last chance for all players to optimize their form ahead of the World Matchplay, which will start a week later. However, some big names like Luke Littler, Michael van Gerwen and Peter Wright will not be present. Michael Smith has also decided not to travel to Kiel, after he also failed to qualify for the World Matchplay this week for the first time in thirteen years.

It is only the third edition of the tournament in Kiel, and Rob Cross starts this weekend as the defending champion. In last year's final, 'Voltage' was too strong for Luke Humphries then, 8-6. Below you can read which eight matches are scheduled for Friday night.
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Dirk van Duijvenbode makes his first appearance and will take on Ryan Meikle. On paper, 'Aubergenius' is the clear favorite, but the Dutchman must guard against underestimation. For Meikle it is only his second Euro Tour tournament this year, after the Dutch Darts Championship in Rosmalen. Then 'The Barber' did not get past the second round. For Van Duijnbode, his best result on the Euro Tour this year was a semi-final at the European Darts Grand Prix. Can the Dutchman improve on this result in Kiel? Then he will first have to deal with Ryan Meikle in the first round.

The second match of the evening session concerns a German friendly between Niko Springer and Kevin Troppmann. Springer is known as a major talent in Germany and proved himself earlier this year on the Euro Tour by reaching the final of the Dutch Darts Championship in Rosmalen. In that final, however, he was defeated by Jonny Clayton. For Troppmann it will be his debut on the Euro Tour after winning the European Tour Home Nation Qualifier 9 last month by beating Michael Rosenauer in the final.

After this German clash, it is time for William O'Connor and Tytus Kanik to take to the oche. For O'Connor, things are not going well on the Euro Tour. After four previous participations, he has reached only one quarterfinal. Furthermore, the Irishman never made it past the first round. For Kanik it will be his debut on the European Tour. The Pole managed to secure a ticket via the European Tour Card Holder Qualifier 9, in which he was too strong for Dutchman Richard Veenstra in the deciding match. Kanik will be able to play freely on his debut, while O'Connor will still want to prove himself.

Raymond van Barneveld then takes on Belgian Andy Baetens. Barney' managed to qualify for the World Matchplay earlier this week and will travel to Kiel with a good feeling. On the Euro Tour, however, the Dutchman is not really clicking this year. The five-time world champion only managed to reach the last 16 twice so far. For Baetens it will be his debut on the Euro Tour after he qualified through the European Tour Card Holder Qualifier.

The next match on the program is a duel between Daryl Gurney and Martin Lukeman. Gurney caused a big surprise earlier this year when he and Josh Rock won the World Cup of Darts for Northern Ireland. On the Euro Tour this year, 'Superchin' has not advanced beyond a quarterfinal. Lukeman is also no stranger to the Euro Tour. The Brit managed to qualify for three previous tournaments via the European Tour Card Holder Qualifier. His best result to date was a quarterfinal at the European Darts Grand Prix.

In the sixth match of the evening, it is again time for a Belgian. Mike De Decker can take on the Austrian Mensur Suljovic. 'Real Deal' managed to reach the final directly at the beginning of this year during the very first Euro Tour. But since then, the Belgian has not made it past the last 16. For Suljovic, it will be his first Euro Tour tournament in 2025 after he managed to secure a ticket via the European Tour Card Holder Qualifier. The Austrian's pace could become a factor in the match, and it remains to be seen how Decker will handle it.

The penultimate match of the evening is between German Ricardo Pietreczko and Pole Sebastian Bialecki. For Pietreczko, who won the German Darts Championship two years ago, things are not going as smoothly on the Euro Tour in 2025. 'Pikachu' only managed to reach the quarterfinals once, but otherwise often did not get beyond the second round. Like many others this evening session, it will be Bialecki's first Euro Tour tournament this year. His best result on the European Tour in his career so far is the last 32. Who knows, maybe "The Bolt" can change that this weekend.

The final event of this evening session involves a British showdown between Joe Cullen and Justin Hood. Cullen, a three-time Euro Tour tournament winner, is not in the best phase of his career. 'The Rockstar' has dropped to number 24 in the world rankings and has not been able to break even on the European Tour this year. Cullen only managed to reach the last 16 twice so far. Like many others, Hood managed to qualify through the European Tour Card Holder Qualifier, where he beat Brett Claydon in the deciding match. Happy Feet' is making his debut, and with an unformed Cullen he might just be the perfect opponent to win his first match.