Van Gerwen looks ahead to Wade clash in Dublin: "Remains a treacherous player to play against"

Michael van Gerwen is almost certain of a place in the play-offs after eleven weeks in the Premier League Darts. The four best players of the regular league phase will battle for the title during the final night on Monday 13 June in Berlin.

Van Gerwen is in second place with 25 points, one point behind leader Jonny Clayton. He has built up a ten point lead to fifth spot. DartsNews asked him what grade he would give himself for the first eleven weeks of play.

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"To give a mark I find difficult, but certainly good enough", reacts Van Gerwen to DartsNews. "It's going well, three wins and two finals, so I hope I can do something good in Dublin.

Prior to the Premier League, Van Gerwen had set himself the target of winning at least three or four nights. With five weeks to go the counter stands at three weekly titles, so Mighty Mike could adjust his goal.

"You always have to keep adjusting. I think it's going fantastically well. Of course there are always things you want to polish, but you also have to be satisfied once in a while.''

Wade a treacherous player

The five-time Premier League champion has the honour of opening the evening in the Irish capital, Dublin. He meets James Wade in the first match of the evening. Van Gerwen is wary of Wade, who beat the Dutchman in Birmingham at the end of March. The two subsequent encounters, however, went to Van Gerwen.

"I've played him several times in this Premier League, but tonight is a new night. You always have to start very sharp against him, he's a tricky player to play against. He almost hypnotises you and you have to stay sharp. He's a champion at pretending he doesn't care and then throwing superbly.''

The week of play in Dublin is the start of a busy month, with a Premier League night every week, followed by a Euro Tour tournament. There are also midweek Pro Tour tournaments scheduled, but Van Gerwen skips them.

"After the Euro Tour in Leverkusen there are also a few Pro Tours, which I skip. You can't play well seven days a week. That's not possible. You have to keep your head. The corona time is over and then you know that during the Premier League you have a very busy schedule. You have to deal with that. Take your rest, make sure you sleep well and make sure you do the right things for yourself.