Van Barneveld well rested prior to start of European Darts Matchplay after holiday in Turkey: ''That was very welcome after five busy months''

After a welcome rest, Raymond van Barneveld has travelled to the German city of Trier rested for his participation in the European Darts Matchplay.

The 56-year-old Hagenaar had two quiet weeks leading up to this Euro Tour tournament. This came at the right time for Van Barneveld after a busy first half of the season with tournaments on various circuits. 'Barney' chose to spend a few days in the sun in Turkey.

''I had a week of rest in Turkey with my girlfriend at the beginning of June. That was very welcome after five busy months with Pro Tours, Euro Tours, UK Open and a World Series in January. It has been busy enough, so we were finally able to go to Turkey for eight days'', Van Barneveld said in a wide-ranging interview.

So now the real work starts again. For some darters, the upcoming Euro Tour tournament is all about qualification for the World Matchplay. Van Barneveld is virtually qualified, but is mathematically not sure yet. However, things would have to be very strange if the five-time world champion does not qualify for the Winter Gardens in mid-July.

''I am 6,000 pounds ahead of the number seventeen,'' Van Barneveld shows he is well aware of the situation. ''I myself am thirteenth on that list and may be sixteenth. So that means four to six men have to pass me. And to score £6,000 you have to get to the semi-finals at least and there can only be four there. The top 16 in the world are also competing so do the maths.... I've done crazier things in life, but I think I can assume I'm pretty safe for it. And that would be heartening to participate again after so many years. Blackpool is obviously a fantastic event to be at.''

The Dutch darts pioneer may consider himself reasonably safe for the World Matchplay, but that does not mean that the only title at stake at the European Darts Matchplay is the one he will play.

''The ranking goes on of course,'' Van Barneveld responded when asked if he could then play relaxed in Trier. ''You also want to go to the World Grand Prix and the European Darts Championship, of course. This tournament also counts for that again. At the end of August I will try to qualify for the Euro Tours in Budapest, Jena and Hildesheim. Those are coming up as well. For the Matchplay, I think it will be enough, but of course you want to move on.''

However, Van Barneveld is likely to be seen at many televised tournaments this year. This is mainly due to the turnaround that has been made at the Euro Tour qualifying tournaments. In 2022, 'Barney' played only three of the 13 Euro Tour tournaments. This year, Van Barneveld has made 9 out of 10.

''I did get lucky once in that. For the tournament in Riesa I was on the reserve list and there were some dropouts. Then I was told a few days beforehand that I could participate in Riesa. Of course I was placed on the ranking for Leeuwarden, but there I got an incredibly tough draw with Dimitri van den Bergh who was in amazing form. That was unfortunate, because then you don't get money for the ranking but you do get money for the bank. If you get in on ranking, you have to win the first round to have it added to your ranking balance. That was unfortunate. Apart from that, just placed seven times, which was of course top. In the end just nine Euro Tours out of ten. Only missed Prague. That was a shame, because that's also a very nice city.''

In the draw for the European Darts Matchplay, he was paired with George Killington, who is no stranger to Van Barneveld.

''He's a good acquaintance of Steve West. So I also drove to Barnsley once with him and Steve West via London. We had a ride together in the car and then I got to know him a bit better. He was still quite new to the circuit then.''

''I do remember playing against him once last year. Then I just barely won 5-4 during the qualifying tournament for the Grand Slam of Darts. Of course, I can already see next round against Michael van Gerwen, but you shouldn't look that far yet because George Killington is just a very good dart player. You have to get past that one first.''

Nevertheless, darts-loving Holland is hoping for a clash between the two best darters the country has produced. ''Of course we all know what Michael can do, I don't have to explain that to anyone. He is one of the better players in the world. Just line up those people in the top-16, at some point an opponent will come out of that. And whether that is Michael or Martin Schindler, none of that matters anymore. You just have to compete against everyone. The only thing is of course that guys like Michael throw 10-, 11-, 12- or 13-darters more often than the rest.''

''Should I get through that match against Killington, I hope for a good match against Michael. It would be nice if I could win that one as well and then we go into Sunday. I'm really looking forward to it,'' Van Barneveld concluded.