DE DECKER SURPRISED AT BELGIUM OPEN FINAL RUN

By Aaron Nijjar  

MIKE DE DECKER admits he surprised himself as he reached his first EuroTour final at the Belgium Open.   

‘The Real Deal’ KO’D world number one Luke Humphries 6-4 in the second round and averaged an impressive 100.45. 

World No. 21 De Decker then continued his great form by beating Martin Schindler 6-3 with a stellar 102.49 average and former world champion Gerwyn Price (6-4) in the quarter-finals on Sunday.  

De Decker came back from 6-4 down to edge a 7-6 win over Ross Smith in the semi-finals before succumbing to teen sensation Luke Littler 8-5 in the final.  

World Grand Prix champion De Decker revealed to Het Nieuwsblad that he was shocked to finish as runner-up at Oktoberhallen after he survived two match darts to avoid being knocked out in the first round by Thomas Lovely. 

He said: “I literally don’t understand anything about it. It was two darts or I was out. Sometimes you need some luck. 

“I really didn’t see this day coming. It was going well at practice, but Friday you throw bad and you think ‘why?’ I win that match then, and then something clicked, I don’t know what it is.  

“Darts is a mental thing. You want things to work out and then you don’t have patience. But despite some stronger matches with my new equipment, I’m still going to throw that thicker barrel anyway and see what it gives.” 

He added: “I wasn’t top in the final, I have to admit that honestly. I just couldn’t repeat the performance of the past matches against Humphries and Price.  

“And against Littler that gets punished. Then you have to be at your best. I did my best.

“Occasionally I managed to break him, but on the own leg it went wrong. 40, 60, 57-scores break you down… But overall I am very satisfied.  

“This is what I had signed up for before the weekend.” 

Previously, De Decker had never been beyond the last eight of a European Tour event. 

The 29-year-old also had failed to win a match in a televised major this year. 

However, in his home country the talented Belgian put in sensational performances that showed exactly why he was capable of winning his first major and Players Championship title last year. 

De Decker is now motivated to continue his winning run in the ranked TV events later this year.  

He admitted: “I felt really good. I did show my best level until the finals, so that’s kind of a boost.

“But one tournament doesn’t say anything. The main majors don’t come until the second part of the year, but I’m going to cherish this weekend. The crowd was fantastic and now I just want to eat and sleep.”  

Image credit: PDC.