Michael van Gerwen’s problems on the oche continue to mount. The three-time world champion was knocked out in the first round of the European Darts Championship last weekend. As a result, he has dropped out of the world’s top ten for the first time since 2012. Former top hockey players Ellen Hoog and Naomi van As are concerned about the Dutchman’s form, with the World Darts Championship starting in six weeks.

Van Gerwen lost 6-3 to fellow Dutchman Kevin Doets in Dortmund on Friday evening. Doets was making his European Darts Championship debut. The early exit reflects a disappointing season for “Mighty Mike”, who has been unable to rediscover his previous form.

The former hockey player says Van Gerwen continues to receive plenty of support despite his disappointing results. “Of course, people are still making excuses for him, because nobody will bring it up if he has a good World Championship. But this was the first round of the European Championship. He was out straight away. And now, which is obviously quite painful, he has also dropped out of the world’s top ten. He is now even provisionally down to 13th. He will head into the World Championship in December with very little confidence.”

Van Gerwen risks slipping further down the world rankings

The impact of his disappointing results is now showing in the world rankings. Van Gerwen currently sits 13th and faces the prospect of falling further. He remains among the world’s top 16 for now, but his position is far from secure. On the provisional rankings for after the next World Championship, the Dutchman is as low as 20th. Based on results from the past 12 months, he is only 25th.

Van As also believes the situation is becoming increasingly worrying. “You’re thinking now: can it get any worse? Would it bother him to be 13th? I don’t know. He had been in the top ten since 2012,” she notes.

The former Olympic champion believes Van Gerwen needs to find a way to break his poor run soon, though she knows that is easier said than done. “He needs a kick up the backside. But that’s always easier said than done. We don’t know what’s going on in his head. Of course, we’d love to see him get a bit of a lift.”

Belief in a turnaround at the World Darts Championship

Despite the disappointing results, people close to Van Gerwen still believe he can turn things around. Vincent van der Voort, a close friend of the three-time world champion, expects Van Gerwen to return to form at the World Darts Championship.

Van As hopes that prediction proves correct. She stresses that the mental side of darts should not be underestimated and points to the faith Van der Voort continues to place in his close friend.

“Vincent van der Voort says he’ll be ready for the upcoming World Championship. Then everything can change again. They’re close friends, of course, and he has a lot of faith in him. I think that’s lovely,” Van As concludes.