Michael van Gerwen secured his first televised title in two years with victory over defending champion Luke Littler in the World Series of Darts final.
The Dutchman, who had not win a TV title since 2023, beat Littler 11-7 in front of a partisan home crowd in Amsterdam to lift the trophy for a sixth time.
“We all know what difficulties I’ve had in the last few months, but to do it in front of my home crowd means a lot to me, it’s amazing,” Van Gerwen told ITV Sport.
“I’ve never been away, but I’ve had to dig really deep to do this. I love what I do. I hope this is the beginning of a lot more.”
Van Gerwen began well and had three 180s in the opening five legs to lead 3-2 at the first interval.
Littler levelled straight after the resumption, but Van Gerwen rattled off three straight legs to move back in front.
The key moment of the match came when Littler missed darts to make it 7-7, with Van Gerwen instead taking the leg before then moving 9-6 in front.
The 36-year-old sealed the win with a fine 130 checkout, ending with an average of 98.37.
Van Gerwen had earlier beaten Josh Rock 11-6 in the semi-finals, while Littler fought back from 9-5 down to beat Gerwyn Price 11-10.
