"The Premier League? That's up to the PDC" – Danny Noppert stakes his claim by dumping Van Gerwen out of Grand Slam for fifth major QF of 2025

Danny Noppert isn’t someone who wastes words, but the ones he did offer after beating Michael van Gerwen 10–6 in the last 16 of the 2025 Grand Slam of Darts in Wolverhampton, landed with the force of a man who knows exactly where his game sits in the darting hierarchy.

This was a statement. A real one.

Understandably, the prospect of a potential Premier League Darts debut in 2026 was brought up in Noppert's post-match press conference. And fittingly, he summed it all up himself: “If I deserve the Premier League, then I deserve the Premier League. That’s up to the PDC.”

Time will tell if Noppert gets the nod, but with the kind of form he has shown throughout 2025, few would say he doesn’t deserve the chance.

The match erupted immediately. Four ton-plus finishes in the opening five legs, two 170 checkouts, Van Gerwen on a 106 average and still trailing the man averaging 112.

Van Gerwen launched the fireworks with a 170. Noppert shrugged and hit his own 170 two legs later. He followed it with a 101. Van Gerwen responded with a 160.

Noppert admitted he loved going blow-for-blow with the three-time champion: “It’s always nice to do a 170, of course. And to do it against him, yeah… I was really happy with that.”

The heavy finishing didn’t hold across the match, but the quality did. Noppert controlled the pace, controlled the scoring, and crucially controlled himself.

The Freeze kept his head while Van Gerwen’s doubles deserted him. After missing bull for a 119, Noppert watched Van Gerwen choke the chance to level and stepped in for 6–4. That moment felt like the real separation.

“I was there tonight,” Noppert reflected afterwards. “My finishing was well, scoring was well. I think I dominated again after the second break.”

He nearly wrapped things up with a 120 outshot but missed tops for a flourish. No matter. A leg later he returned to the same bed and ended it properly.

This isn’t a flash. Noppert has been one of the most consistent forces on the 2025 circuit: four TV semi-finals, a Euro Tour final, and now another major quarter-final.

He’s not one for self-hype, but even he couldn’t dodge the question forever. “My belief is higher than it has ever been,” he said. “Am I in my best performance? I don’t know… but I am steady all the time. I think I’m in good form now.”

He was also blunt when asked whether he felt like the favourite before the match given Van Gerwen’s turbulent year: “I think so, yeah. Michael is troubling with everything, and I’m in good form.”

With his results this year, Premier League chatter was inevitable. Noppert handled it with typically calm indifference. “If I deserve the Premier League, then I deserve the Premier League. It’s about the PDC to make the decision.”

Pressed again later, he expanded just slightly: “Of course I believe I can be there… the way I play now at the moment, yeah.”

No campaign. No sales pitch. Just darts doing the talking.

Back in the Netherlands, Van Gerwen has long been the immovable face of the sport. Not tonight.

And Noppert didn’t pretend to care about that narrative: “I’m never busy with what other players are doing. I want to perform all the time the best I can. I don’t give anything about what other top players do.”

Noppert now faces Lucas Wenig in the last eight, the same man against whom he survived seven match darts in the group stage. He knows it won’t be repeated. “I don’t expect he does it again. He’s also rolling in the tournament… he has the nerves. It will be a tough game.”

Tough, yes. But right now, Noppert looks like a quiet contender. And a man the PDC may have no choice but to put under the Premier League lights next year.