Jonny Clayton (Photo by Kelly Deckers/PDC)
Jonny Clayton continued his Premier League dominance by picking up his second consecutive nightly win on Night Eleven after defeating Luke Littler 6-4 in the final in Rotterdam.
Clayton picked up a fourth nightly win of the campaign in just eleven weeks and extended his lead at the top of the table to six points after claiming victory at the Rotterdam Ahoy on Thursday.
The Welsh number one saw off home hero Michael van Gerwen, Josh Rock and Littler to storm to victory in the Netherlands, upping his points tally to 29 after just 11 weeks.
The league leader began his night by recording back-to-back victories over Van Gerwen, blasting past the Dutchman 6-2 with a remarkable 170 checkout to win the match.
The 51-year-old then followed this up with a finishing masterclass against Josh Rock in the semi-finals, defying seven 180s from the Northern Irishman and winning a last-leg decider to reach his fifth nightly final in 11 weeks.
Clayton began the showpiece trailing 2-0, after Littler opened with an 11-darter and followed with a break of throw.
The 2021 Premier League champion rallied, taking three legs straight to lead for the first time in the match, and later took out a clutch 78 outshot with Littler waiting on a double to go one leg away from victory.
The World Champion took a 15-dart hold to threaten a comeback, but Clayton capitalised on profligate finishing from his opponent, taking out tops to secure his fourth nightly win and all but secure his spot at the O2.
“I would have taken one win, so to have four and be top of the table, happy days,” beamed Clayton, who holds a 16-point buffer from fifth in the Play-Off race.
“You have to take your chance and I’ve taken them again tonight and that’s all that counts.
“I had to do something special because it’s my 20th anniversary today and I did forget!
“I watched last week’s game against Michael and it hurt a little bit when someone said I was favourite to finish bottom.
“That really hurt. It annoyed me a bit to be honest. It’s going good for myself now and I’ve got a massive smile on my face.”
Littler bolstered his chances of a Play-Off spot by making his fourth final in seven weeks, seeing off Gerwyn Price and Josh Rock to move up to 24 points in the standings.
The world number one saw off Gerwyn Price in his opening match in front of a hostile Rotterdam Ahoy, taking out two 124 checkouts – the second of which on the bullseye to win the match – to defeat Price for the fifth consecutive time this campaign and claim his first win in three weeks.
Littler then edged past defending champion Humphries in their third straight last-leg decider this season, defying a 103 average from Humphries and holding on after almost letting a 5-2 lead slip.
In the other quarter-finals, Humphries defeated Dutch number one Gian van Veen 6-2 on his Premier League debut in Rotterdam, putting in yet another ton-plus average to pick up his first win in four weeks.
The defending champion resultantly leapfrogged Van Veen into fifth, but still sits three points shy of Van Gerwen in fourth.
Rock bagged his fourth consecutive quarter-final win with a 6-1 trouncing of Stephen Bunting, who averaged in excess of 104 in defeat.
The Northern Irishman averaged 102.55 himself and hit 50% of his outer-ring attempts to keep his hopes of a maiden appearance at the O2 alive.
The Premier League rolls into Liverpool next week for another crucial night of action, as the race for the Play-Offs intensify.
Home hero Bunting will take on Clayton in his pursuit of a first nightly win since Night Four, while Humphries faces Littler in a rematch of their remarkable semi-final.
Van Veen will face Price on his birthday in the opening quarter-final of the night, and Van Gerwen will hope to consolidate his Play-Off spot as he locks horns with Rock.
Ranking points are awarded per night – with five to the winner, three to the runner-up and two to the semi-finalists – to form the league table from which the top four players will progress to Finals Night at The O2 in London on Thursday May 28.
RESULTS
Quarter-Finals
Luke Littler 6-3 Gerwyn Price
Luke Humphries 6-2 Gian van Veen
Jonny Clayton 6-2 Michael van Gerwen
Josh Rock 6-1 Stephen Bunting
Semi-Finals
Luke Littler 6-5 Luke Humphries
Jonny Clayton 6-5 Josh Rock
Final
Jonny Clayton 6-4 Luke Littler
