Gian van Veen has opened up about the intimidation he felt facing Gerwyn Price early in his career, ahead of their quarter-final clash on Night Two of the Premier League Darts 2026 in Antwerp. Van Veen, who reached the final on debut last week before losing 6-4 to Michael van Gerwen, admitted that in their initial meetings, he was "quite intimidated" by Price's stage presence, particularly his roaring. He recalled, "Especially the first couple of times I played him, I think it was in the first year of my tour card," noting that Price beat him every time, with Van Veen averaging above 105 in those matches.
The Dutch player described how Price's roaring disrupted his game, saying, "Every time I knew what was going to happen when I was on stage, but then when he hit the good shot or a 180, then he started roaring, and I didn't really know what to do." This uncertainty, including thoughts like "Should I roar back? Should I do all kinds of stuff?" led Van Veen to believe it "really got me out of my game the first couple of times." Despite producing elite numbers, he struggled with the wider stage dynamic during that phase of his PDC career.
However, Van Veen's perspective shifted after his first victory over Price, which came last year in Prague—a 6-0 win he humorously referenced by saying, "I'll do that again tomorrow then. 6-0." He explained, "But now I know what it's like to beat him. I know what it takes to beat him," adding that this experience has given him "much more confidence going into tomorrow." With more experience under his belt, Van Veen believes he has "grown so much as a player" and that the issues that once unsettled him "shouldn't be an issue anymore" as he prepares for the Antwerp matchup.
