Niels Zonneveld narrowly saw off James Hurrell at the Austrian Darts Open 6-5 in a low quality affair, with both players capable of much more. Speaking to DartsNews afterwards, Zonneveld hit a superb 135 checkout but was down on his overall display. “I think it’s the only shot that felt good because the other 10 legs weren’t that good. But in the end I managed to win and I’m really happy with that,” he said.
Zonneveld acknowledged the importance of winning scrappy matches: “That’s really good because you also have to win the low-quality matches. Not always, of course, but especially 60-70 per cent of the time, and I think that’s what I did today. I’m happy with that because maybe I should have lost, but that good finish at the end was really important.”
With Kevin Doets winning his maiden title this week, Wessel Nijman registering five titles already this year, and Van Veen, MVG and Noppert at the top, Dutch darts is in a great place — but it leaves Zonneveld with little chance of fulfilling his World Cup dream. “Not really good because I have no chance to play the World Cup! No, but of course Dutch darts is in a really good place at the moment. I think we could maybe have nine or 10 players in the top 32 next year. It’s really good for our country. We’re a really small country, so to have darts in that kind of place is brilliant, I think.”
In particular, Zonneveld dreams of partnering his neighbour since birth, Wessel Nijman, on the big stage. “Especially if I can play it with Wessel, yes. We’ve been neighbours since he was born, so if one day I can play the World Cup with Wessel, that would be great.”
Zonneveld, the only player this year to beat Luke Littler in a ranking event, also spoke about his form and goals. “That’s a good thing! I don’t know, it’s just good form. At home everything is good at the moment and I think that gives some rest. I’ve practised a lot at home as well. I don’t know exactly what it is, but maybe everything is falling together right now and I think that’s coming out in my performances. My main goal is getting into the top 32. I think I have a really good chance, and then we’ll see further after that. I’m just focused on reaching the top 32 for the first time in my career, so let’s do that first and then look at the other goals.” He also credited the Dutch Darts Federation: “I think the Dutch Darts Federation has done a really good job organising tournaments, investing in youth and developing young players. I think we’re seeing the results of that now because Kevin, Wessel, me and Gian are all young guys. I think the work the NDB has put in over the last 20 years is showing now. If you can have five, six, maybe even seven, eight or nine Dutch players in the top 32, then for our country that’s brilliant.”
