VAN VEEN FRUSTRATED BY DIP IN FORM FOLLOWING SURGERY
17/04/2026 By Aaron Nijjar
GIAN VAN VEEN has admitted his current level is “not Premier League worthy” after a tough night on his debut at the Rotterdam Ahoy.
The Dutchman endured a difficult evening on his home debut on the weekly roadshow, losing 6–2 to Luke Humphries.
World No.3 Van Veen averaged 93 and admitted afterwards that his performance wasn’t good enough to compete on the big stage.
The slump comes after a difficult spell for The Giant, who recently missed a night in Dublin due to surgery for kidney stones and has since struggled to find momentum.
Since returning, Van Veen has lost his opening match in three of his last four quarter-finals, with results yet to stabilise.
He told ViaPlay: “It was great to experience and it’s a memory that will always stay with me.
“This has been my level lately. Scoring-wise it’s not good enough. That frustrates me. I’m working hard, but it’s not paying off yet.
“It’s been happening for a number of weeks now; since the surgery it hasn’t improved. It’s not Premier League-worthy.
“It hurts me a lot. When you get an invitation to the Premier League, you want to show everything and show your best game.
“The first weeks went well, the weeks after much less. But that’s part of it and I’ll keep fighting. I’ll keep doing my best and it will be fine.
“I’m giving myself time, but it really is time for things to get better.”
Van Veen currently sits sixth in the table and is four points off the play-off places.
He returns to action this Saturday at the European Darts Grand Prix where he will face either Joe Cullen or Maik Kuivenhoven in the second round.
Image by Taylor Lanning.
