Grand Slam of Darts

The fifteenth edition of the Grand Slam of Darts was held from 13 to 21 November 2021 at the Aldersley Leisure Village in Wolverhampton. Gerwyn Price wins the title for the third time, by beating Peter Wright in the final.

Only two Dutchmen manage to qualify for the tournament. In addition to Michael van Gerwen, Raymond van Barneveld also places himself into the Grand Slam. The 2012 winner battles through the qualifying tournament and is back at it for the first time since 2018. Unfortunately for Van Barneveld, he does not get further than the group stage: in a difficult group with Michael Smith and Gary Anderson, he does not succeed in beating one of the two men. The second group match against Joe Davis will be a victory, but that turns out not to be enough to advance to the last sixteen. Van Gerwen plays a strong group stage, winning successively against Lisa Ashton, Joe Cullen and John Henderson. The match against Cullen in particular is spectacular: the Dutchman wins with 5-2 and an average of 115.19. With this he throws the highest average ever at the Grand Slam of Darts.

Gerwyn Price's group may have the biggest surprise: Price easily qualified for the last sixteen, but group mate Krzysztof Ratajski choked in the last group match against Nathan Rafferty. The young Northern Irishman beats the Pole 5-4 and moves on to the second round. Youngsters Bradley Brooks (at the expense of, among others, Mervyn King) and Rowby-John Rodriguez (who finishes above Chris Dobey and Stephen Bunting), also manage to grab a place in the last sixteen.

In Poule E, Fallon Sherrock is allowed to show her skills. After losing her first game 5-1 to Peter Wright, she beats Mike de Decker 5-0 and averaged 101.55 (the highest average ever for a woman on TV). In the final match, she must beat Gabriel Clemens 5-3 to continue. After trailing 3-1, Sherrock throws a 141 finish to get back into the game and eventually wins 5-3 after throwing a 170 finish. She is making history again as the first woman to survive the group stage of the Grand Slam of Darts.

In the last sixteen, Price has a hard time with Bradley Brooks. The young Englishman plays a creditable game, but eventually has to bow to Price (10-8). Rob Cross, James Wade and Jonny Clayton easily beat Ryan Joyce, Rowby-John Rodriguez and Nathan Rafferty. In the other half of the draw, Peter Wright and Jose de Sousa put up a good fight. It is Wright who eventually takes the decisive nineteenth leg. Michael van Gerwen and Gary Anderson also play a strong game, but it is Van Gerwen who turns out to be the strongest with 10-8. Michael Smith beats Joe Cullen 10-5, but most of the attention goes to Fallon Sherrock. She wins 10-5 against a not very good Mensur Suljovic, which means she advances to the quarterfinals for the first time.

In those quarterfinals, Sherrock will face Peter Wright. The former world champion must pull out all the stops to defeat Sherrock. It eventually becomes 16-13 for the Scot, but Sherrock's 98.90 average over 29 legs can be called convincing. Wright will play in the semifinals against James Wade, who won a great match against Rob Cross 16-14. The other two quarterfinals are also a mouthwatering: Michael Smith beats Michael van Gerwen 16-13, while Gerwyn Price does win the meeting with compatriot Jonny Clayton this time: 16-12.

The tournament will eventually have a 'dreamed' final between the numbers 1 and 2 in the world. Gerwyn Price can go for his third title, after beating an unconvincing James Wade 16-9. Peter Wright reaches the final after an exciting match against Michael Smith: Wright falls 12-8 behind, but then wins eight legs in a row for a place in the final.

Just like in 2019, the final will be between Gerwyn Price and Peter Wright. And just like in 2019, it is Price who takes the title. Wright, who played a very strong quarterfinal and a very strong semifinal, is short of strength in the final to make a serious shot for the title. He still throws a 155 finish, but that is when Price is already at match point. 'The Iceman' eventually wins 16-8, allowing him to crown himself as Grand Slam champion for the third time.