Michael van Gerwen underwent painful dental surgery in June, which means he will now have to wear braces for the foreseeable future. Though this is no impediment to his darts performance, as proved 'Mighty Mike' earlier this month in Poland.
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The Dutchman captured the title in supreme fashion at the Poland Darts Masters in Warsaw after, among other things, throwing two averages above 110. His good friend Vincent van der Voort was on Viaplay Saturday night, giving an update on Van Gerwen's healing process.
''In itself, the recovery is going better now,'' Van der Voort began. ''It doesn't hurt very much, but he has trouble eating and talking is difficult. It's all not optimal but I think he showed in Poland that there is nothing wrong with his form.''
Van der Voort did tell Van Gerwen that he suffered a setback. ''A whole piece was taken out in between so his tooth is all the way to the side, that now has to be straightened with braces. In one in ten people it then hangs and he has that again,'' Van der Voort said.
For defending champion Van Gerwen, the World Matchplay begins on Sunday evening. Then he will face Brendan Dolan in the first round of the prestigious tournament in Blackpool.
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He contributes to DartsNews.com, where he covers professional darts through news, match reports, analysis, and live coverage across the PDC calendar and major tournaments.
A key part of his work is on-site reporting from leading events. Kieran has covered the PDC World Darts Championship in person, reporting daily from the venue and providing first-hand insight from the tournament. During his coverage, he has conducted interviews with leading players including Luke Littler, Luke Humphries, and Gerwyn Price.
He is also one of the leading voices of the English-language Dartsnews Podcast, contributing regular analysis and discussion on developments across the professional darts circuit.
In his reporting, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles when new, verified information becomes available.