Luke Humphries Loses Early in Hungarian Darts Trophy to Dirk van Duijvenbode

Top seed Luke Humphries suffered a major upset at the Hungarian Darts Trophy in Budapest, falling to a 6-3 defeat against Netherlands star Dirk van Duijvenbode in the second round of the Professional Darts Corporation European Tour event.

Humphries, the 2024 World Champion and current world number two, entered the tournament directly in the second round as the top-seeded player. However, the Englishman struggled to find his scoring rhythm on the Budapest stage, finishing the match with an average of just 92.67.

Van Duijvenbode, currently ranked 21st in the world PDC standings, capitalized on his opponent's sub-par performance. Leading 4-3 in a tense contest, the 34-year-old Dutchman struck a crucial 140 checkout to break the match open before closing out the six-leg victory to secure one of the biggest results of the tournament so far.

While Humphries was eliminated early, three-time world champion Michael van Gerwen survived a major scare to advance. The 37-year-old Dutch icon found himself trailing 3-1 against James Hurrell before mounting a trademark comeback. Van Gerwen won five of the final six legs to secure a 6-4 victory and avoid an early exit from the European Tour event.

Van Gerwen now advances to face world-class rival Nathan Aspinall in a high-profile third-round matchup. Aspinall earned his place in the next round by overcoming Ryan Joyce by an identical 6-4 scoreline.

Former world champions Rob Cross and Gary Anderson also successfully navigated their second-round fixtures. Cross, who opened his tournament by narrowly defeating Beau Greaves on her European Tour debut in the first round, delivered another solid performance to defeat Luke Woodhouse. Anderson produced a dominant display to comfortably win his match and reach the final day of competition.

They are joined in the third round by Welsh star Jonny Clayton, who also secured a comfortable victory, alongside a deep field of European Tour contenders. Gian van Veen, Dave Chisnall, Josh Rock, Stephen Bunting, Chris Dobey, Danny Noppert, Ryan Searle, and Ross Smith all won their respective matches to progress in Budapest.

The Hungarian Darts Trophy remains one of the premier events on the PDC European Tour schedule, bringing the world elite darts players to Hungary to compete for vital Order of Merit ranking points. Tournament action continues in Budapest as the remaining field battles for the prestigious title.

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