Final
Michael van Gerwen 11-7 Peter Wright
Michael van Gerwen retained his title in spectacular fashion, landing
eleven 180s as he resumed his rivalry with Peter Wright.
The Dutchman briefly fell behind at 2-3, but by the time of the second
break he had moved comfortably back in front at 6-4.
Photo: PDC/Lawrence Lustig
The gap only grew as a confident van Gerwen continued to up his
average on the way to what proved to be a relatively comfortable
victory.
“This is a very special win for me,” said van Gerwen. “This is the first
time I’ve won a major title twice in a row and it’s absolutely fantastic.
“To win this great trophy again is huge and it means a lot to win again
in this country means a lot because it’s one of the nicest places in the
world.
“I’ve worked so hard for this for the past two days. I thought I was the
better player throughout the final but I made it difficult for myself at
times - but I got the win and that’s all that mattered.
“It was a tough game against James Wade on Thursday and it was the
same again when I played Adrian and Peter, and I think I was the best
player in the tournament.
“Peter hit a couple of good finishes in the final to keep himself in the
final, but it doesn’t matter how you win and I’ve got the trophy in my
hands. I think I showed my class in this tournament and I’m very proud
of myself.
“This is a great tournament, the crowd is fantastic and the venue is
great. To win this is a great feeling for me.”
“This is a great
tournament, the
crowd is fantastic
and the venue is
great. To win this is
a great feeling for
me”
Michael van Gerwen
“It’s been a brilliant experience,” added Wright. “The venue was
amazing and the crowds were fantastic and Dubai is a beautiful place,
and hopefully I’ll be back next year to try and take the trophy away
from Michael.
“I took a couple of big finishes out but I was too inconsistent with my
scores. I should have made it five-each but I was struggling with my
consistency.
“It’s all about stepping stones and learning, and each time I’m getting
closer and closer, and this will give me lots of confidence for the
tournaments which are coming up.”
Photo: PDC/Lawrence Lustig