Michael van Gerwen was not quite "over the moon" with his performance against Peter Wright at the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes on Tuesday, but he said: "It was important for me to get an early win this year because of the disappointment of last year"
Wednesday 7 April 2021 08:38, UK
Michael van Gerwen joked he had two points in one pocket and Peter Wright in the other following a comprehensive win over his rival in the Premier League.
Five-time champion Van Gerwen was among five players to pick up their first wins of the new campaign at the Marshall Arena, as the Dutchman punished an out-of-sorts Wright, despite averaging just 92.16.
A repeat of the 2017 Premier League final was highly-anticipated following verbal exchanges between the players in the media, but it was Van Gerwen who got the better of this tie to boost his battle to return to the play-offs this season.
Despite neither player being near their fluent best, Van Gerwen was visibly fired up for the occasion and let out a roar after striking a crucial 14-dart break of throw to go 4-2 up.
From there it was one-way traffic as Van Gerwen continuously punished Wright, whose 29 per cent double accuracy was a far cry from his perfection on the outer ring on opening night.
"I'm happy with the two points but with my performance I'm not too happy," Van Gerwen told Sky Sports.
"But to win over Peter Wright with a 92 average, I can't really complain, it's always nice to beat him.
"My scoring power was on and off; some legs I was playing well, some legs I was playing poorly. But in the Premier League only the two points count and that's the most important thing.
"I'm OK, I'm not over the moon because I've not played really well but at least I doubled up on my point from yesterday."
Pointing in turn to his pockets, the 31-year-old - who drew with debutant Dimitri Van den Bergh on the opening night - added: "Listen, two points here; Peter Wright there."
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