“When I’m relaxed, I’m dangerous” - Luke Humphries upbeat despite losing Swiss Darts Trophy final to Jonny Clayton

Luke Humphries’ bid for back-to-back titles ended against Jonny Clayton in Basel, but the World Grand Prix champion left the Swiss Darts Trophy talking about how dangerous he feels when relaxed. After twice averaging above 110 on Sunday, Humphries remained upbeat despite an 8-4 defeat that denied him a tenth European Tour crown.

“With that World Grand Prix trophy, I came up on this stage this weekend and thought everything’s a bonus - when I’m relaxed, I’m dangerous,” Humphries said in his on-stage interview after the final.

His strongest performance came against Krzysztof Ratajski, whom he whitewashed 6-0 with a tournament-record 114.15 average. Humphries then averaged 100.40 against Cristo Reyes before producing 111.17 and missing just one dart at double in his 7-4 semi-final victory over Mensur Suljovic.

That run followed a much closer opening match against Kevin Doets. The Dutchman averaged 105.64 and forced a deciding leg, but Humphries survived before winning all three of his Sunday matches on the way to the final.

Clayton had beaten Karel Sedlacek and Gian van Veen earlier in the evening, averaging 105 against the latter, and Humphries was generous in his assessment of the eventual champion.

“I think Jonny was unbelievable there,” he said. “I think the two top players in this tournament made the final. I’m proud of Jonny, he’s a fantastic bloke and fantastic friend - I’m happy for him to win.”

Humphries had opportunities to take control of the final, including four missed darts to break in the third leg. Two legs later, he opened with six perfect darts but never returned to the board as Clayton completed an 11-dart hold.

The pair remained level at 4-4 before Clayton won the last four legs. Humphries missed double 16 to break in the ninth, then the bull for a 164 checkout in the tenth, allowing the Welshman to establish the first two-leg cushion of the match.

Humphries averaged 101.75 against Clayton’s 101.68, but his finishing fell sharply from the semi-final: he converted approximately 22% of his doubles to Clayton’s 62%. He nevertheless completed the weekend with a three-figure average in every match, his pursuit of a tenth European Tour title continuing after five successive ton-plus performances in Basel.