Michael van Gerwen pulls out of tournament hours before event after being humiliated

Michael van Gerwen has pulled out of a darts tournament just days after suffering a shock defeat at the weekend.

Van Gerwen, a three-time world champion, has not been in good form on the oche and was beaten 6-5 by 23-year-old Dominik Gruellich in the first-round of the fifteenth Players Championship in his hometown Hildesheim - the Dutchman's fifth opening round exit in six PDC Pro Tour events this year.

Though he reached the World Darts Championship final before being beaten by Luke Littler, Van Gerwen has not been usual self and is yet to secure a nightly win in any of the Premier League darts events - despite occupying fourth spot in the table going into night 15.

The next iteration, the penultimate event of the season, takes place on Thursday and it's emerged that Van Gerwen has taken a bit of time off beforehand.

He was scheduled to appear in the sixteenth Players Championship on Tuesday but his close friend and former player Vincent van der Voort has confirmed his absence.

"Van Gerwen will not participate in the sixteenth Players Championship, which is taking place today in Hildesheim. He’s already home," says Van der Voort said on the Darts Draait Door podcast "He’s taking two days off because Thursday is crucial."

Van Gerwen is still third in the PDC Order of Merit and won the German Grand Prix last month to claim the 38th Euro Tour title of his career.

However, 'Mighty' Mike is is enduring an extremely difficult season and Van der Voort explained the reasons behind his compatriot's struggles.

Darts star Michael van Gerwen has had a very poor season. Image: Getty

"When I see how things are going, the belief just isn’t there," he stated.

"His presence is lacking, there’s no aggression or passion in his game. It’s just about throwing at the board and hoping for the best."

Van Gerwen takes on Nathan Aspinall in his first round clash on Thursday as fifth meets fifth. He is currently just one point above the Asp going into the final two nights of Premier League darts action

The nightly winner receives five points, with second place getting three points and the losing semi-finalists handed two points on the board.

The top four players progress to the play-off at the O2 in London, where the winner takes £275,000.