Wessel Nijman secured his third ranking title of the season by defeating Joe Cullen 8-4 in the final of Players Championship 8, held in Leicester. The event, completed yesterday, saw Nijman add this victory to his previous wins at a Players Championship and a European Tour event this season.
Despite the triumph, the standout statistical performance came from Dave Chisnall, who recorded the highest average of the tournament at 111.72 during a 6-1 last-32 win over Martin Schindler. However, Chisnall's run ended in the quarterfinals with a 6-4 loss to Nijman. Jurjen van der Velde posted the second-highest average of 107.24 in a 6-2 first-round victory over Ryan Joyce, but he fell 6-5 to compatriot Sietse Lap in the next round. Dirk van Duijvenbode rounded out the top three averages with 106.39 in a 6-3 opening win against Marvin Kraft, before losing 6-4 to Lap in the last 32.
The Players Championship series now pauses and is set to resume on Monday, 13/03, with the ninth event scheduled in Wigan. In the meantime, the PDC Pro Tour continues with the German Darts Grand Prix in Munich this weekend, where Michael van Gerwen will defend his title after beating Gian van Veen 8-5 in last year's final.
