Summary:
Michael van Gerwen is once again raising questions with his mix of top-class performances and lacklustre spells. After winning the Nordic Darts Masters and reaching the 2026 World Cup final alongside Gian van Veen, the Dutchman missed out on two Players Championships before suffering an unconvincing exit at the Slovak Darts Open. Vincent van der Voort, speaking on the Darts Draait Door podcast, believes that the statistics and his attitude now raise serious questions for the former world number one.
Van Gerwen: brilliant one week, then much less consistent the next
The question is not whether Michael van Gerwen is still capable of flashes of brilliance. The answer is yes, and June proved it. The three-time world champion won the Nordic Darts Masters, then helped the Netherlands reach the final of the 2026 World Cup of Darts alongside Gian van Veen. At times, his pace, scoring authority and presence at the oche resembled the Van Gerwen who dominated the circuit for years.
The question, rather, is one of consistency. Dartsnews reports that, a few days after that World Cup final, Van Gerwen once again skipped two Players Championships. This time he had a medical reason, with Vincent van der Voort citing an infection that needed treatment. But for the former Dutch player, this one-off excuse is not enough to change the overall picture: MVG is missing ranking events far too often, even though he still has a lot to defend in the Order of Merit.
Why the Players Championships carry so much weight in the debate
The contrast is significant because not all tournaments have the same sporting impact. The Nordic Darts Masters and the World Cup bring prestige, confidence and visibility, but they do not carry the same weight as ranking events in the race for world ranking. The Players Championships, on the other hand, directly fuel the dynamics of the Order of Merit and are becoming essential for a player who wants to avoid a sharp drop in the rankings.
| A recent development | Impact on the debate |
|---|---|
| Nordic Darts Masters | Title and a positive sign regarding the standard of play |
| 2026 World Cup | Reached the final with Gian van Veen, but the tournament did not follow the usual individual ranking format |
| Missed Players Championships | Missed opportunities to defend or add prize money to the Order of Merit |
| Slovak Darts Open | An unconvincing return despite a hard-fought opening victory |
This is precisely what Van der Voort highlights: repeated absences from the floor circuit make the path more difficult. At this level, consistency isn’t built solely on big televised nights. It’s also forged in the more low-key tournaments, where you have to string together matches, rack up points and stay in step with the PDC calendar.
The Slovak Darts Open has reignited doubts
After his recovery, Van Gerwen was very much in attendance at the Slovak Darts Open. But his performance failed to live up to expectations. He initially struggled to get past Krzysztof Ratajski, before losing in the round of 16 to Andrew Gilding. This isn’t an isolated blip, but it’s exactly the sort of performance that fuels the impression of a player capable of being impressive one week, only to be much more vulnerable the next.
Van der Voort put the question quite bluntly: how can Van Gerwen be so sharp one week, regain his rhythm and that hunger to win so quickly, only to fail to show the same intensity in the next tournament? The former player emphasises, in particular, the state of mind. In his view, at the World Cup, Van Gerwen once again displayed that ‘refusal to lose’ mentality, that energy which has always been part of his trademark. At the Slovak Darts Open, that impression was less evident.
Is it a question of ability or consistency?
The distinction is crucial. To speak of inconsistency is not to say that Van Gerwen is no longer at the top of his game. His best spells are still capable of causing any opponent serious trouble. However, the modern calendar doesn’t just reward peaks of form. It rewards the ability to come back week after week, to win tricky matches and to turn good spells into sustained runs.
Van der Voort also admits that the circumstances over the weekend were not ideal, particularly as the Dutch team were playing in the World Cup on Saturday evening before Van Gerwen’s match. But he refuses to accept that as a sufficient excuse. His message is simple: a player of Van Gerwen’s calibre must remain professional enough to get the job done, even when the timing isn’t perfect.
What Van Gerwen needs to clarify now
For MVG, the challenge over the coming weeks is therefore less spectacular than winning a major title, but perhaps more important: regaining a reliable foundation. If he wants to secure his place amongst the elite, he must turn his flashes of top form into consistent performances in the tournaments that count towards the rankings. Failing that, every absence and every mediocre performance will reignite the same question.
The debate sparked by Van der Voort is all the more striking because it comes from someone close to him, not an outside observer simply seeking controversy. He does not question Van Gerwen’s talent. He highlights a contradiction that has become all too apparent: the Dutchman can still play like a major contender, but he does not do so often enough to fully reassure people about his trajectory.
