DIMI OPENS UP ON PAIN OF MISSING MAJORS

DIMITRI VAN DEN BERGH admits failing to qualify for major events “hurt” him badly as he prepares for a return to the World Championship. 

‘The Dreammaker’ says watching the big tournaments from home cut him deeply after years as a regular on the sport’s biggest stages. 

World No23 Van den Bergh has endured a difficult season, making just one ProTour quarter-final at Players Championship 34. 

The Belgian missed the World Grand Prix, World Matchplay, Grand Slam, and Players Championship Finals as his form dipped sharply. 

Van den Bergh believes the setback forced him to reset his mindset and refocus on the goals that matter most. 

He told Het Nieuwsblad: “It hurt me to have to miss those majors. 

“I was able to qualify for the majors for years… It was not easy to watch those tournaments on television.  

“But I’m a darts fan, so I watched to see what the Belgians did. I have constantly said to myself: ‘Focus on the World Championship’.  

“It hurt, but the World Championship is the most important tournament of the year. Empty your cup, keep fighting and exercise patience.” 

While absent from the big stage, Dimi threw himself into a strict training regime at home. 

He added: “I played the last floor tournaments at the end of October, so I haven’t played a professional match since. So that’s been a while.  

“But since the beginning of October, I have been training five days a week – at least – with my brother Xanti, sometimes even double sessions of several hours a day. 

“I know: I’m prepared. I know how many hours I put into it.  

“I also won a pairs tournament with my buddy Glenn, which was a mental victory. 

“For me, it is important to achieve mental victories. I know I can throw well and believe in myself.” 

Two-time major winner Van den Bergh stepped away from competitive darts for two months in April to prioritise his mental wellbeing. 

Van den Bergh revealed he reached a point where he felt hopeless on stage. 

He continued: “That is frustrating, to this day. I want so badly. Everyone should know this: every game I play is on willpower.  

“I want to win 100 percent and I will never give up. I will always be like that. When I start, I give full throttle. Alone… There was a period in which I was like: ‘I don’t care who I play against, I’m going to lose anyway’.  

“Because of that thought, I walked away from the game for a while. It didn’t matter to me at the time: difficult draw, easy draw… I thought: ‘Why am I standing here?’  

“And suddenly in my head I thought: ‘You have to get out of here. Why would you keep walking around here, something you don’t want to have anything to do with at the moment? Roll it off!’ That’s what I did.” 

The 31-year-old returned at the World Cup in June and, despite the results not falling his way, insists he is feeling far more positive. 

He said: “After the World Cup I started to participate fully on the Pro Tour again.  

“I played everything I could play. It didn’t go smoothly, but that was to be expected somewhere.  

“I took a step back and had a lot of mental problems. I’m only human for once. Everyone who supported me: thank you very much. That was good. 

“When I reached the quarter-finals at the last floor tournament, I was often told: ‘Glad you’re playing well again, it’s granted to you.’  

“When someone like Luke Humphries tells you that he thinks what you have done is brave and that it is indeed not easy… That does something. 

“Today I have been feeling much more positive inwardly for a very long time. I didn’t often have to worry about how I feel anymore. That’s good and fun. We take that with us on stage in Ally Pally.” 

Van den Bergh will face Darren Beveridge in round one at the World Championship on December 14.

Image by Taylor Lanning.