Josh Rock has responded after Sky Sports’ commentators were left confused by one of his throws during his Premier League Darts night two clash against Michael van Gerwen.
Rock, who is competing in his first Premier League Darts campaign, was beaten 6–2 in the night two quarter-finals by night one winner Van Gerwen in Antwerp, Belgium, on Thursday (12 February).
The 24-year-old Northern Irishman won the first leg before MVG levelled at 1–1 in leg two. In leg three, Rock missed a huge chance when he had three darts at double 15, but he could not land one before the Dutchman took full advantage by making it 2–1.
Rock returned with a 180 in the fourth leg before being unable to check out, finding 14, then hitting one rather than 20, which prompted Sky Sports’ commentator Rod Studd to say: “Oh my word… what on earth? What a time — he’s indicating it’s slipped out of his hand,” while the 24-year-old shook his head in disbelief.
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“A real shake of the head from Josh Rock, things just aren’t clicking for him at the moment,” co-commentator Laura Turner added.
Van Gerwen then punished him by landing double 16 to make it 3–1. The Dutchman also won the fifth leg, making it 4–1, after Rock missed the opportunity to take out 72.
MVG also secured the sixth leg to make it 5–1, finishing with 120, before Rock pulled a leg back in the seventh to make it 5–2 – although his darts continued to slip out of his hand.
The 36-year-old world number four finished by making it 6–2 with a double nine to seal the match and end Rock’s evening early.
He then progressed to the final, beating Luke Littler 6-4 in the semi-finals before losing 6–3 to Gerwyn Price in the final.
After two nights of action, Van Gerwen leads the standings with eight points, while Price (five points), Jonny Clayton (four points) and Gian van Veen (three points) make up the top four.
Littler and Luke Humphries are fifth and sixth, both on two points, while Stephen Bunting and Rock are seventh and eighth with zero points.
Shortly after his defeat, Rock addressed his performance in a post on social media, with the Antrim thrower apologising to fans.
He wrote: “Want to apologise to everyone who watched me. I felt fantastic up there but had no grip in my fingers. It is what it is. We move on. All the best @mvg180 [Michael van Gerwen].”
Night three of the Premier League will take place at the OVO Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland, on 19 February.
Premier League Night Two results:
Quarter-Finals
Luke Littler 6-5 Luke Humphries
Michael van Gerwen 6-2 Josh Rock
Jonny Clayton 6-4 Stephen Bunting
Gerwyn Price 6-5 Gian van Veen
Semi-Finals
Michael van Gerwen 6-4 Luke Littler
Gerwyn Price 6-5 Jonny Clayton
Final
Gerwyn Price 6-3 Michael van Gerwen
Topics: Darts, Luke Littler, Michael van Gerwen, Sky Sports
Luke Davies