The Dutch Open Darts will stage a high-profile final on Sunday, as the open Pairs tournament concludes with a showdown between Jimmy van Schie and Danny van Trijp and Dirk van Duijvenbode and Maik Kuivenhoven.

The Dutch Open Darts is the largest open darts tournament in the world, not only in the singles competitions. The open Pairs tournament also saw De Bonte Wever filled to capacity with dart players. No fewer than 2,048 pairs began a long day of competition at 10:00 on Friday morning. Nine matches later, the semi-finals took place shortly after 21:00. By that stage, last year’s champions had already been eliminated. Koen den Hartog and Klaas Buijsman saw their title defence end after just two matches, losing 3–1 to Jan Timmerman and Heine Uuldriks. Jacques Nieuwlaat and Co Stompé exited after one match, despite a 3–2 victory over Karl Cron and Radek Klaczek, while Darren Webster’s comeback, partnering Jim Widmayer, came to an end against Ramon Leferink and Leroy Jansen.

After five hours, the tournament gathered pace. The pairings of Martijn Kleermaker and Lex van Berkel, Jeffrey de Zwaan and Moreno Blom, James Beeton and Nick Fullwell, Ron Meulenkamp and Jeremy van der Winkel, and Jurjen van der Velde and Jarno Bottenberg were eliminated in or before the last 64. In the last 32, Wesley Plaisier and Dennie Olde Kalter followed, as the two Tour Card holders were defeated 3–1 by Tom van den Hoogen and Vinay Ramnath. Vincent van der Voort and Quinn Sneeboer were also eliminated at this stage, while MC Richard Ashdown, partnering Michael van Dijk, also recorded a very respectable result.

Tour Card holders dominate

The PDC allowed Tour Card holders to participate in this year’s Dutch Open Darts pairs tournament, and five players made full use of that opportunity by reaching the quarter-finals. Dirk van Duijvenbode and Maik Kuivenhoven did not lose a single leg on their way to the quarter-finals; Brian Raman and Nunjo Dewaele were the first to take a leg from them, although the Belgian duo still went down 3–1. Richard Veenstra and Chris Landman also encountered few problems on their route to the semi-finals, with the experienced pair recording a convincing 3–0 victory over Jerry Hendriks and Levy Frauenfelder in the quarter-finals. Jimmy van Schie completed the quintet, as the tall Dutchman and his partner Danny van Trijp repeatedly fought their way back from difficult positions to secure victory.

The semi-final also proved a tough battle for Van Schie and Van Trijp. Trailing 2–1 against Veenstra and Landman, they then stepped up the pace. With legs of 19, 24 and 18 darts (a strong standard in a 701 format), they powered into the final. On Sunday, they will face formidable opposition. Dirk van Duijvenbode and Maik Kuivenhoven were outplayed for long periods in their semi-final against Andy Baetens and Jelle Klaasen, but the Belgian-Dutch duo faltered at the crucial moment. Van Duijvenbode and Kuivenhoven fought back from a 3–1 deficit to win 4–3, securing their place in Sunday’s final.

Results

Quarter-finals
Dirk van Duijvenbode / Maik Kuivenhoven 3–1 Brian Raman / Nunjo Dewaele
Jelle Klaasen / Andy Baetens 3–0 Wesley van Trijp / Nigel van Milligen
Jimmy van Schie / Danny van Trijp 3–0 Lars van Langen / Kevin Koning
Richard Veenstra / Chris Landman 3–0 Jerry Hendriks / Levy Frauenfelder

Semi-finals
Dirk van Duijvenbode / Maik Kuivenhoven 4–3 Jelle Klaasen / Andy Baetens
Jimmy van Schie / Danny van Trijp 4–2 Richard Veenstra / Chris Landman

Final
Dirk van Duijvenbode / Maik Kuivenhoven vs Jimmy van Schie / Danny van Trijp

Source: NDB / Dartsactueel

Foto: Jos Groen