Michael van Gerwen has been consistently picking up points in the Premier League but Luke Humphries wants to put a stop to that when they meet on Night Seven in Cardiff.
Van Gerwen has won all but one of the six quarter-finals he has competed in so far, continuously racking up at least two points to keep himself ticking in the Premier League table.
The Dutchman sits on 10 points, five behind the world no 1 in second, despite not yet picking up a nightly win in 2025.
With the ‘Green Machine’ able to either move within just a few points of Humphries with a quarter-final win, or even go level with him on 15 points if he wins the night in Cardiff, Humphries knows how important it is to stop Van Gerwen in his tracks.
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Watch the full match of Luke Littler against Humphries on night six of the Premier League in Nottingham
“If he beats me, he’s within three points of me and he’s not made it to the final yet. So it just shows the consistency that he’s shown,” Humphries said.
“He’s won five out of the six first round games and he probably should have won that one against Rob Cross in Exeter.
“Michael hasn’t been playing his best but you’ve got to look at the record he’s had in those first games. He’s winning them every time.
“And obviously for me, I’m probably the one that stops him.
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Watch Humphries hit a nine-darter against Cross
“Like I said before the tournament started, those first-round games are incredibly important.
“Two points is massive because really there’s only one person that can outdo you by quite a few points and that’s the winner.
“If people are getting three points in something like that, it’s not really too bad.”
If he beats Van Gerwen, Humphries believes the shackles will come off as once he has at least the two quarter-final points wrapped up, that is when he starts to play his best darts.
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Highlights of the Premier League Night Four final between Humphries and Littler in Exeter
“After the quarter-final, I think you relax. And I think that’s what happens to me. You get freed up first and then that’s when I become my most dangerous,” added Humphries.
“I know that Michael’s going to be up for it because if he loses, he could be out of the top four.
“For me, I just want to break away a bit more and give myself a bit more leeway in the top four.”
Where does the Premier League head next?
The Premier League continues on Thursday March 20 from the Utilita Arena in Cardiff as Luke Humphries faces off with Michael van Gerwen. Watch Night Seven of Premier League Darts, in Liverpool, live on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Action from 7pm – stream with NOW.
Sky Sports will once again be the home of the Premier League in 2025, with every night exclusively live along with the World Matchplay, World Grand Prix, Grand Slam of Darts and more! Stream darts and more top sport with NOW
