Krzysztof Ratajski landed this one exactly when it mattered most. In Leverkusen, the Pole came from 6-4 down to beat Jermaine Wattimena 8-6 in the final of the 2026 European Darts Open. He took the last four legs to seal his first title of the year and a third career crown on the European Tour. With the World Matchplay just around the corner, this is more than a neat Sunday result. It is a real form marker.
The PDC pushed the moment immediately after the final, and the official post below captures the angle perfectly. Ratajski had been under pressure, then took the match back at exactly the right time to finish the week with the trophy.
RATAJSKI REIGNS IN LEVERKUSEN! 🏆🇵🇱
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) July 12, 2026
Krzysztof Ratajski wins his third European Tour title!
Poland's number one defeats Jermaine Wattimena 8-6 to lift the European Darts Open! 👏
📺 https://t.co/YyBPPwoMK8 #ET10 | Final pic.twitter.com/HWBTj61Bss
A final that swung twice
The opening stretch belonged to Ratajski. He settled more quickly, looked cleaner in the early exchanges and moved into a 4-1 lead with the match under control. Then Wattimena flipped the tone completely. Five legs on the spin, sharper finishing in the key moments, and suddenly the Dutchman was in front 6-4.
That is where the final really changed shape. Plenty of players would have drifted from there. Ratajski did the opposite. He steadied himself, won the next four legs and closed out the title 8-6. The scoreline is tight, but the story is even stronger than that: he absorbed the swing against him, then shut the match down before Wattimena could recover.
After the final, Ratajski admitted the title had gone beyond what he expected from the weekend. The timing matters too. Going into Blackpool with a trophy and a pressure finish changes the feel around his game immediately.
A Sunday run with real weight behind it
This was not a title built on one good match. On the final day, Ratajski handled a very mixed set of tests. He first beat Gian van Veen 6-3 in the last 16, then removed defending champion Nathan Aspinall 6-4 in the quarter-finals. At that point, the week was already starting to look serious.
He then edged past Sebastian Bialecki 7-5 in an all-Polish semi-final that had obvious danger written all over it, before finishing the job against Wattimena. Put simply, Ratajski did not just take advantage of an open section. He came through different kinds of matches, each asking for its own adjustment in rhythm, control and nerve.
| Round | Ratajski's match |
|---|---|
| Last 16 | Krzysztof Ratajski beat Gian van Veen 6-3 |
| Quarter-final | Krzysztof Ratajski beat Nathan Aspinall 6-4 |
| Semi-final | Krzysztof Ratajski beat Sebastian Bialecki 7-5 |
| Final | Krzysztof Ratajski beat Jermaine Wattimena 8-6 |
Wattimena let the title go, not the weekend
For Jermaine Wattimena, the frustration is obvious. At 6-4, the title was right there. He had already turned a difficult final back in his favour, and for a while he looked like the player with the emotional edge. But late on, that margin disappeared fast.
Even so, reducing his week to the final result would miss the bigger point. The Dutchman beat Ryan Joyce 6-1, Luke Woodhouse 6-5 and Damon Heta 7-3 to make the final. First semi-final, then first final on this circuit: the trophy slipped away, but the overall message from his week is still a strong one.
Why this matters before Blackpool
The 2026 World Matchplay starts on 18 July at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool, which is what gives this result its extra edge. Ratajski arrives with fresh evidence, a title won under pressure and proof that he can still pull a match back when the momentum turns against him.
The PDC also points out that he remains perfect in ProTour finals. That detail matters because it says something about his ability to close when the opening is there. This does not suddenly make him the outright man to beat at Blackpool, but it definitely changes the conversation around his form. From our side, the takeaway is pretty simple: Ratajski is a player worth watching very closely again.
