VINCENT VAN DER VOORT says it’s time to say “goodbye” to the dominant years of Michael Van Gerwen.
Former pro Van der Voort admits the three-time world champion remains a genuine threat in every tournament but says constant comparisons to his era of total control are unfair.
World No3 Van Gerwen reached the European Championship semi-finals recently and won the World Series Finals in September.
Van der Voort believes that alone proves the 36-year-old is still operating at elite standard.
He said: “A semi-final of the European Championship is just good. And on the floor before that he doesn’t get below 96 average either. Then you can’t say he’s not throwing anything
“It’s not the Van Gerwen of 10 years ago, but maybe we should say goodbye to that in the near future. That we measure him by what he’s done recently.
“He can show his level in no time, because he has already done that a few times this year.
“For example, at the World Series of Darts Finals and recently at the European Darts Championships. He needs to work back to his best level.”
Pundit Damian Vlottes suggested expectations surrounding Van Gerwen will always remain high.
He explained: “That’s right, he’ll keep those too. But it’s not fair to compare him now to then. If you do, he’ll never be good again.”
Mighty Mike will face Gary Anderson, Beau Greaves and Niko Springer in the group stage of the Grand Slam of Darts.
Van der Voort continued: “These are players who are all throwing well at the moment.
“Van Gerwen actually benefits from strong opposition. That keeps him sharp.”
Van Gerwen, a 48-time major winner, FAILED to qualify for the Players Championship Finals after falling short of the required prize money on the ProTour floor events this campaign.
MVG also failed to qualify for Premier League Finals Night for the first time since 2020 earlier this year.
But the Dutchman has proved there’s plenty of fire left in the tank this season, breaking a two-year major drought and bagging another Euro Tour title at the German Grand Prix.
