WESSEL Nijman claimed a remarkable eighth ranking title of 2026 after scooping the inaugural Slovak Darts Open in Bratislava on Sunday, defeating Rob Cross 8-3 in a fantastic final.
The Dutchman – who had claimed Players Championship 21 on Tuesday – continued his outstanding form at the Incheba Expo to become the first-ever winner of the Slovak Darts Open.
The Dutchman follows in the footsteps of Phil Taylor, Michael van Gerwen and Peter Wright in becoming just the fourth player to have claimed eight or more ProTour titles in one season, while becoming the first player in 2026 to claim multiple European Tour titles.
The 25-year-old blew away Cross in the final with an exceptional display, taking out two ton-plus finishes and four legs on the spin to lead 5-2. Although Cross produced a valiant display himself and averaged north of 102, Nijman relentlessly ploughed on, taking out a 12-dart break before wrapping up victory with a 74 outshot – finishing the contest with a 103.80 average.
“I cannot put this into words. It’s so amazing,” confessed Nijman, who climbed to world number 14 after becoming the inaugural Slovak Darts Open champion.
“Sometimes you have those days where you feel this can be a winning day because you feel so confident and today was a day like that.
“I’m really happy I did it. It was so warm up here, so it was a game of stamina, but whenever you get control you’re probably going to win the game, and that’s what I did.”
Nijman kicked off his title bid with comprehensive victories over Benjamin Pratnemer and Stephen Bunting, including a 6-1 win over the latter after missing just a sole dart at double across the contest.
The Dutchman then produced a wondrous display to shrug off Mike De Decker in the quarter-finals, conjuring a 170 finish and producing a 104.50 average.In the last four, the former Development Tour winner almost let a 5-2 lead slip against Ross Smith, but took out 341 in six darts in the last-leg decider to clinch his spot in the showpiece.
“This tournament just shows the level of darts at the moment,” continued Nijman, who now tops the 2026 European Tour rankings.
“Even without [Luke] Littler and [Luke] Humphries, the level is still high and that’s what the PDC is like now.
“I’m really looking forward to the World Matchplay. Last year I was there and I felt this was the best tournament there is.
“I hope I can do some damage there and show the darts I’ve been producing here, and we’ll just see what happens.”
The PDC ProTour resumes with Players Championships 23-24 from July 6-7 in a crucial two days of darts, with the World Matchplay field to be finalised following the conclusion of Event 24.
The European Tour will return shortly after from July 10-12, as Leverkusen hosts the 2026 Elten Safety Shoes European Darts Open.
.2026 Slovak Darts Open
Sunday June 21
Afternoon Session
Rob Cross 6-5 Kevin Doets
Nathan Aspinall 6-0 Ryan Searle
Tom Sykes 6-4 Cameron Menzies
Jermaine Wattimena 6-5 Danny Noppert
Andrew Gilding 6-4 Michael van Gerwen
Ross Smith 6-4 Chris Dobey
Mike De Decker 6-5 Ryan Joyce
Wessel Nijman 6-1 Stephen Bunting
Evening Session
Quarter-Finals
Rob Cross 6-2 Nathan Aspinall
Tom Sykes 6-2 Jermaine Wattimena
Ross Smith 6-4 Andrew Gilding
Wessel Nijman 6-3 Mike De Decker
Semi-FinalsRob Cross 7-2 Tom Sykes
Wessel Nijman 7-6 Ross Smith
Final
Wessel Nijman 8-3 Rob Cross
Inages: Paul Targyik/PDC Europe
