Work to do for Michael van Gerwen after shaky World Championship start: “The sharpness just isn’t there”

Day eight of the 2026 World Darts Championship delivered plenty to talk about again, but one conclusion stood out for Vincent van der Voort: Michael van Gerwen got away with one, and rhythm was the main reason. In the podcast WK Darts Draait Door, the retired pro offered an unfiltered analysis of ‘Mighty Mike’s’ 3-1 win over debutant Mitsuhiko Tatsunami, immediately putting his finger on the sore spot.

In the opening minutes, Van der Voort saw little cause for alarm. The first three darts, the feeling it would ‘just’ happen, and then an evening that went in every direction. Not because Tatsunami suddenly turned out to be a world-beater, but because Van Gerwen made life difficult for himself. Van der Voort summed it up without euphemism. “Look, I don’t think his form is that bad. I just think it’s all a lack of match rhythm.”

According to Van der Voort, the core issue isn’t technique, not the throw, not even pure form, but how Van Gerwen structured his weeks leading up to Alexandra Palace. “Also the way of training. Of course he threw a lot at home. He did put in the hours. But he didn’t test himself, consistently. And that’s what I’ve often hammered on. He needs to train.”

The word ‘test’ came up several times. Not just tossing for an hour, not casually loosening the arm, but training as if someone opposite you is forcing you to be sharp at the moments that matter. “And even if you don’t have an opponent, you need to play games where you test yourself. And you can see now, the sharpness just isn’t there. With flashes it’s very good.”

Van der Voort also acknowledged that a lot about Van Gerwen looked fine, but it didn’t come together in one consistent line. “Some visits, sometimes it sits in really nicely. The darts are fine. It sits well in the board. It flies well. The arm movement isn’t bad either. But it isn’t sharp.”

And that sharpness is exactly the difference at the Worlds between ‘surviving’ and ‘dominating’. Against someone like Tatsunami you can still get away with it, but the feeling you’re playing three gears too low won’t be without consequences.

That Van Gerwen didn’t make a statement against Tatsunami, as others have done in the tournament, didn’t surprise Van der Voort. He mainly looked at the calendar. “Of course that plays a role. We did play the exhibitions. And he was up for that. But that was already a week and a half ago. And then in that week and a half, until two or three days beforehand, you really have to test yourself. And in my view that happened far too little.”

This year’s Worlds already shows several players coming in at full level right away. Van der Voort mentioned the group that “have put something down,” with big names and challengers immediately showing where they stand. On day eight, Van Gerwen wasn’t among them. “That definitely didn’t happen.”

His verdict on the match remained firm. “Yeah, this was just an average performance… This just wasn’t good. He should be happy he had this opponent and got away with it.” It was mainly Van Gerwen’s inconsistency that bothered him. “There was no continuity at all. Or that he suddenly had it. That third set was pretty good. But the fourth set was really very average again.”

Van Gerwen has time until December 23, and Van der Voort believes you can still fine-tune a few things in a few days, provided you take it seriously. “Of course. In a few days you can definitely do something. You certainly can. But then you have to actually do it.”

He doesn’t expect miracles, but he does expect an approach that mirrors match situations. Not loose sessions, but formats that simulate pressure. “I just think you already need to put in an hour tomorrow. And start playing games.”

Van der Voort also outlined how that can look in practice, without needing a top-level sparring partner right away. “But that you just say this. He plays 301, you 501. That you have to chase. But at least that you’re the hunter. And that you’re focused on winning matches. That you replicate that.”

He didn’t dare predict whether Van Gerwen will take that on board. “I don’t know… You can only offer it. And say that’s what it is. And then it’s up to him whether he accepts it. If he thinks it isn’t necessary. Then he definitely shouldn’t do it.”

The darts day also gained an edge due to the TV moment around Van Gerwen and his ex-wife Daphne, who was approached by Shownews on a match day. Van der Voort made clear he was irritated by the timing and the way it was aired. “Yes, right. I just talked to him about it. He says they were at Daphne’s door. And she posted once today. That wasn’t the arrangement at all. She was kind of lured into it.”

Van der Voort was especially clear about how this kind of media can ‘push’ at such moments. “Then I said, I’m really not happy with that. How they handled it. Shownews.” And about the material ultimately used: “She also says if you saw the whole interview, you’d see it’s only positive. What she says about him. There’s nothing sensational coming. Only that’s how it was presented again.”

It was, in the presenter’s words, a subject you don’t want any “noise” around at a World Championship, especially not for a player already searching for match sharpness.

While Van Gerwen was able to escape, Belgium the same day was hit by harsh reality in full. Mike De Decker crashed out to David Munyua, the Kenyan debutant who instantly became a crowd favorite at Ally Pally. Van der Voort mainly saw a player struggling with himself. “I don’t know. But he’s obviously not in top form. So I think he also went on stage with some insecurity. But I don’t think he saw this coming.”

He acknowledged the crowd was fully behind Munyua, which doesn’t make it easier, but quickly returned to basics. “Only Mike de Dekker in normal form… he just wins that. He’s simply hopelessly out of form at the moment. Changing darts again. You can see his rhythm isn’t right at the moment.”

And then there’s the story of that fifth set, where De Decker seemed to turn it with back-to-back 180s, but still took the blows when it mattered. “Next leg he misses one dart, I think, to make it 2-0. Or he leaves it short. And then that lad bangs in the 135 just like that. Yeah, then you know… you’re in the corner where the punches land.”

Van der Voort’s verdict was as simple as it was scathing, especially given the Kenyan’s average. “Despite everything. The man ends up averaging 80, I believe, over the whole match. You just have to win that.”

Jermaine Wattimena also reached the second round, but it wasn’t convincing. Van der Voort saw “a bit of panic at a certain point,” and called it a match from which Wattimena can “learn a lot of lessons.” His nuance lay in the difference with Van Gerwen: Wattimena can write this off as a one-off, because his year was consistent. “And with Wattimena you can really say this was probably an incident today. Because he’s played well throughout the whole year.”

But the next hurdle is immediately serious: Scott Williams. Van der Voort didn’t beat around the bush. “He’ll have to. Because Scott Williams made a good impression in the first round. So that’s going to be a very tough match. Even if Wattimena is in good form. Then he’s still a really difficult opponent.”