VAN VEEN OVERCOMES DARTITIS STRUGGLES TO REACH FINAL

GIAN VAN VEEN has battled through years of dartitis struggles to reach his first World Championship final.

World No.3 Van Veen produced a stunning 102.99 average to defeat Gary Anderson 6-3 in a thrilling semi-final at Ally Pally.

The match was a spectacle, with both players combining for 25 maximums, six ton-plus checkouts, and a spectacular Big Fish finish apiece.

‘The Giant’ becomes just the THIRD Dutchman to reach the final of the Worlds after Michael van Gerwen and Raymond van Barneveld.

But Van Veen revealed his journey to the top has been anything but smooth as dartitis threatened to derail his career before it even began.

He said: “To win this kind of game, Gary threw everything at me. His finishing and scoring was great.

“I withstood it. Of course, the crowd was a bit against me but it’s fair play because Gary is such a fantastic human-being, such a fantastic darts player. I’m so happy!

“Even now winning this game, five years ago I was struggling playing darts. Three or four years ago, I was in Barnsley, struggling with dartitis and crying at the table.

“Now look at me four years later. It’s all been worth it. All the people that work so hard for me – even my parents when I was 12, 13 years old, they were driving me to all my tournaments everywhere in the Netherlands and here we are, unbelievable.

“I struggled with dartitis for many years. I had it about four years ago just before I got my tour card.

“Even back then when I wasn’t struggling, I never thought this would happen. To be in a World Championship final, is not even a dream come true because I wasn’t able to dream about this but now it’s happened. I’m so happy.

“As a Dutchman, everyone’s idol was Michael van Gerwen or Raymond van Barneveld, and to be the third Dutchman to get to the final is fantastic.”

Anderson took the opening set, but Van Veen responded in style, firing a brilliant 113.35 average in the second to level the match at 1-1 in London.

Van Veen then hit a precise 107 checkout in the opening leg of set three to help take a 2-1 lead in the match.

‘The Flying Scotsman’ fought back to grab a 2-1 lead in set four, but Van Veen quickly turned the tide, taking out a 13-darter followed by a clinical 11-darter to double his advantage to 3-1 in the bout.

The eight-time major winner wasn’t finished, though, hitting a blistering 10-darter and a classy 170 checkout to stay in the hunt in set five. But Van Veen answered back with an 11-darter and a Big Fish finish of his own, sealing the set to move 4-1 ahead.

Anderson maintained his power scoring, rattling off three consecutive legs, each under 15 darts, to halve the deficit to 4-2, capping each leg with a 180 to show he still had plenty of fight left.

World No.6 Anderson took the next set, but Van Veen bounced back after missing set darts, responding superbly to move 5-3 ahead.

Van Veen withstood a brilliant 121 bullseye finish in the ninth set before coolly hitting double 16 to clinch the victory in a brilliant game.

The 23-year-old will now face Luke Littler in the final, with both players vying for the £1million top prize.

Image by Taylor Lanning.