Defending champion Michael van Gerwen was stunned in the first round of the World Series of Darts Finals in Amsterdam, losing 6-5 to Northern Ireland’s Daryl Gurney. Gurney started strongly, taking a 3-0 lead, but van Gerwen fought back with five consecutive legs to take the match to the brink of victory. Gurney, who entered the tournament after fellow Northern Irish player Lourence Ilagan withdrew, edged ahead again in the ninth leg. Despite missing six match darts, van Gerwen managed to level the score at 5-5 and force a deciding leg, which Gurney won to advance. Gurney will now face England’s Ross Smith in the last 16 on Saturday after defeating Kevin Doets 6-3 earlier in the day. Meanwhile, the tournament continued with several notable results. World number one Luke Littler will play former UK Open champion Danny Noppert on Friday, following his 6-0 victory over Noppert at the Czech Darts Open. World number two Luke Humphries also progressed, defeating Jermaine Wattimena 6-4 in a match that saw England face the Netherlands. Dutch number one Gian van Veen claimed a 6-2 victory over Chris Dobey, giving the home crowd a moment of satisfaction after a previous loss to Dobey. Dirk van Duijvenbode made a strong comeback, coming from 4-1 down to beat Sweden’s Viktor Tingstrom 6-4. In another standout performance, Ryan Searle, who hit four perfect legs of 180, defeated former world champion Rob Cross 6-2 and will now face Josh Rock, who secured a dramatic 6-5 win over Stephen Bunting. In other matches, Karel Sedlacek made his mark with a 6-4 victory over New Zealander Ben Robb and will now face Gian van Veen in the next round. The World Series of Darts Finals continues to deliver thrilling matches as players battle for progression in the tournament.