"Those doubles were miles away" - Wessel Nijman rues missed doubles as he squanders chance to beat Michael van Gerwen at European Championship

Wessel Nijman came awfully close to a victory over Michael van Gerwen at the European Championship on Thursday night but ultimately lost to the four-time European champion 6-5. Afterwards, the 24-year-old Dutchman was particularly frustrated and blamed himself for an expensive defeat.

"Yeah, I don't know," Nijman began honestly in an interview with Viaplay. "If I could explain exactly what happened in that last leg, I probably would have had the solution. I think those doubles were miles away as well. At a moment like that it just doesn't want to happen. It is unfortunate, but also right that you lose a match like that."

Nijman started the match slowly, but quickly recovered. "The first leg was a little muddled," he admitted. "But after that I think I came back in 12 or 11 darts - at least twice in four innings." He seemed to add strength to that as he ran out to a 4-2 lead. But just at that point he let the reins slip for a moment. "Then I threw two lesser legs and actually gave it away completely," he said.

In the closing stages, the game had the potential of going either way. Both Van Gerwen and Nijman had chances to close out the match, but the pressure visibly played a role. "In the tenth leg I think Michael missed a couple of match darts," Nijman recalled. "So it could have been the other way around. But in the end, it's not just about that last leg. The match is about eleven legs, and I feel like I've let down too many before."

According to Nijman, the turnaround lay mainly in his own play. "After leading 4-2, I let him come back to 4-4 far too easily. I could have hurt him more," he said self-critically. "Then I hit 72 and the next turn I hit the triple 16 again. But well... it may not be so."

It was a defeat that hurt, but at the same time confirmed that Nijman belongs among the big names. Against a Van Gerwen who did not reach his top level but still made the difference in the decisive phase, the young Dutchman showed that his talent is undeniable.