Van der Voort is supportive of Van Gerwen: "Am not a psychologist, but we discuss everything"

Vincent van der Voort and Michael van Gerwen have been best friends for years. Together they have seen a lot.

Both men regularly speak honestly to each other. "We talk to each other in a way that is hard to explain to others. It is never good enough for both of us, but it is much easier to say something about another person than about yourself. I don't want to say I'm some kind of psychologist for him, but we discuss everything. If he's extremely excited, I make sure he keeps both feet on the ground. And if he is down, I help him up," Van der Voort said to AD.nl.

Van Gerwen is back to his full potential, after his performance in the past two years was a bit less good. "Some people say Michael didn't throw well because of the empty halls, but it was just a down period with an operation and a change of darts. Just tell someone who's winning everything to take different arrows. That's a thing mentally and that took a while, but he's through that too now. I can't say other than that he has everything under control again. If Van Gerwen was in front of those empty halls in his prime, he would have just won everything, too.''

"There are plenty of darters who think they are the best in the world, but they are not," Van der Voort said. "I've been dealing with Michael for so long, I know what he can do. I train with the guy and see things I've never done in my life. He's the best right now. But when you're the best, it's easy to take it too lightly. In that, I often steer him.''

Van der Voort himself is someone who spends a lot of time analyzing opponents. "What can someone do? What can you expect? What not? I am much more involved with the game than Michael. I do remember when he had to play against Josh Rock (the 21-year-old top Northern Irish talent, ed.). I told him for two days that that boy is hyped, that he might be in even better shape than he is. Then you could really see him thinking: what, I'm not going to lose to that! That drove him crazy. Michael benefits from continuing to set goals. That keeps him on his toes.''