Luke Humphries (Photo by Simon O'Connor/PDC)
Luke Humphries, Gian van Veen and Jonny Clayton produced sublime performances to advance to Finals Day at the Swiss Darts Trophy, as ten seeds crashed out on a remarkable day of action in Basel.
Newly crowned World Grand Prix champion Humphries was amongst the headline acts on Day Two at the St. Jakobshalle, where he prevailed in an epic showdown against Kevin Doets.
Despite racing 3-0 ahead with 122 and 121 checkouts, Humphries was forced to survive a furious fightback from Doets, defying the Dutchman’s 105.64 average to triumph in a breathless decider.
“I was really pleased with that performance,” reflected Humphries, who averaged almost 103 and pinned 67% of his attempts at double.
“I felt like I was the better player for most of the game, but Kevin was really strong at the end there, so I had to really work my socks off.”
European Champion Van Veen also impressed on Swiss soil, producing a hat-trick of ton-plus checkouts to whitewash a shell-shocked Niko Springer in just under ten minutes.
“I finished really well,” admitted Van Veen, who followed up successive 107 checkouts with a majestic 164 on the bull.
“There wasn’t much between us in the scoring department, but in the fifth leg Niko missed a couple of chances, I took mine and I think that was the story of the match.”
Clayton, meanwhile, stole the show with an irrepressible display against Maik Kuivenhoven, averaging 108.81 and landing two bullseye finishes to kick off his title bid in style.
The Welshman will take on Rob Cross for a place in the quarter-finals, after the former World Champion halted Luke Woodhouse’s mid-match fightback to close out a battling 6-4 victory.
There will be a new champion crowned at the St. Jakobshalle on Sunday evening, as former champions Stephen Bunting and Martin Schindler bowed out on a day of upsets in Basel.
Swedish star Jeffrey de Graaf put in a clinical display of doubling to account for reigning champion Bunting, while Schindler was swept aside by Tom Bissell, who will feature at Finals Day for the first time in his European Tour career.
Michael van Gerwen was another high-profile name to exit on Saturday, as Mensur Suljovic celebrated his fourth straight victory over the Dutch superstar.
Dirk van Duijvenbode recorded a fifth straight win against James Wade to end the left-hander’s bid for back-to-back European Tour titles, and a resurgent Michael Smith now awaits the Dutchman in the last 16.
The 2022/23 World Champion delivered one of his best performances of the year to seal a 6-4 victory against Jermaine Wattimena, converting consecutive 116, 124 and 144 checkouts in the process.
Smith averaged just shy of 103 to cap off a quality display, which also preserves his hopes of qualifying for the Machineseeker European Championship later this month.
Czechia’s Karel Sedlacek also remains firmly in the hunt for a place in Dortmund, after claiming the scalp of Wessel Nijman to set up a meeting with sixth seed Josh Rock, who edged out Dave Chisnall in a gruelling last-leg shoot-out.
Ross Smith – the current leader on the European Tour rankings – underlined that status with a 6-4 success against William O’Connor, as the Irishman averaged 104 in defeat.
Damon Heta continued his eye-catching form on the European Tour circuit, running out a resounding 6-3 winner against former UK Open champion Danny Noppert in Saturday’s finale.
The Australian number one will now play Cristo Reyes on Sunday afternoon, after Spain’s premier player rattled off four straight legs from 4-2 adrift to complete a comeback win over Ryan Searle.
Bradley Brooks progressed in identical fashion, punishing Chris Dobey’s doubling woes with a four-leg burst to book a last 16 tussle against Bunting’s conqueror De Graaf.
Elsewhere, Krzysztof Ratajski will go head-to-head with top seed Humphries, having opened Saturday’s play with a comprehensive 6-2 victory at the expense of Swiss number one Stefan Bellmont.
Greaves wins back-to-back Women’s Series titles in Wigan
Beau Greaves continued her PDC Women’s Series domination with another brace of titles in Wigan on Saturday.
The reigning three-time Women’s World Matchplay champion claimed back-to-back titles on a bumper day of action, as the year’s final weekend of Women’s Series action got underway at the Robin Park Leisure Centre.
Greaves breezed to the Event 21 title in emphatic style, conceding just five legs in scooping her 14th title of the campaign.
The Doncaster superstar opened her challenge with successive whitewash wins against Laura van den Berg and Ruby Grey, before overcoming Dutch star Aileen de Graaf in round three.
Greaves then averaged north of 101 in a sensational quarter-final blitz of Rhian O’Sullivan, which she backed up with a five-leg drubbing of Fallon Sherrock in the semi-finals.
This set up a winner-takes-all showdown against Sweden’s Vicky Pruim in the Event 21 showpiece, which saw Greaves fire in a superb 13-darter to wrap up a hard-fought 5-3 success.
Greaves extended her winning run with comfortable wins over Sharon Godbeer and Gemma Reynolds in the early stages of Event 22, before recovering from 3-1 down to deny Lisa Ashton.
Ashton squandered multiple match darts to complete a 4-1 win, and after frittering away further opportunities in a last-leg decider, she was duly punished by a ruthless Greaves.
The World Youth Championship runner-up then swept aside Steph Clarke, Joanne Oldershaw and Leanne Topper to maintain her charge, which set up a fascinating clash against Gemma Hayter for the Event 22 crown.
There was little to separate the pair for large periods of the contest, but Greaves eventually prevailed in a high-quality affair, overcoming some late double trouble to celebrate her record-extending 61st Women’s Series title.
Despite missing out on a first title of 2026, Hayter’s run to the Event 22 final was enough to confirm her Paddy Power World Darts Championship return.
Hayter will be joined at Alexandra Palace by Greaves, Ashton and Sherrock, with Pruim currently in pole position to claim the final qualification spot via the PDC Women’s Series rankings.
Ashton, meanwhile, is also poised to feature in next month’s Mr Vegas Grand Slam of Darts, with the Lancashire stalwart closing in on a second-place finish on the PDC Women’s Series rankings.
RESULTS
2026 Swiss Darts Trophy
Round Two
Krzysztof Ratajski 6-2 Stefan Bellmont
Karel Sedlacek 6-4 Wessel Nijman
Rob Cross 6-4 Luke Woodhouse
Tom Bissell 6-4 Martin Schindler
Cristo Reyes 6-4 Ryan Searle
Ross Smith 6-4 William O’Connor
Bradley Brooks 6-4 Chris Dobey
Michael Smith 6-4 Jermaine Wattimena
Josh Rock 6-5 Dave Chisnall
Jeffrey de Graaf 6-4 Stephen Bunting
Dirk van Duijvenbode 6-5 James Wade
Jonny Clayton 6-1 Maik Kuivenhoven
Mensur Suljovic 6-4 Michael van Gerwen
Luke Humphries 6-5 Kevin Doets
Gian van Veen 6-0 Niko Springer
Damon Heta 6-3 Danny Noppert
2026 PDC Women’s Series
Event 21
Quarter-Finals
Kirsi Viinikainen 5-1 Lauren Bloomfield
Vicky Pruim 5-4 Lisa Ashton
Beau Greaves 5-0 Rhian O’Sullivan
Fallon Sherrock 5-4 Gemma Hayter
Semi-Finals
Vicky Pruim 5-2 Kirsi Viinikainen
Beau Greaves 5-0 Fallon Sherrock
Final
Beau Greaves 5-3 Vicky Pruim
Event 22
Quarter-Finals
Gemma Hayter 5-4 Aoife McCormack
Aurora Fochesato 5-1 Fallon Sherrock
Leanne Topper 5-4 Angela Kirkwood
Beau Greaves 5-0 Joanne Oldershaw
Semi-Finals
Gemma Hayter 5-3 Aurora Fochesato
Beau Greaves 5-1 Leanne Topper
Final
Beau Greaves 5-3 Gemma Hayter
