Michael van Gerwen plans to play darts for at least another 10 years and believes he remains a dangerous player to others at the World Championships.

Van Gerwen eased into his Alexandra Palace debut with a 3-0 win over James Hurrell and will face Brendan Dolan in the third round (live) sky sports darts Saturday, December 28th.

The Dutchman has not won a televised tournament in 2024, the first time since 2011 that he has not won a tournament in a calendar year.

“If you look at my ranking this year, I’m still in the top four or five. Can you imagine when I play well again? I’m really dangerous!” Van Gerwen said.

He added: “I’ve renewed my contract with Winmau for 10 years, so I’ll be here longer and I love what I do. That’s the only thing that matters.”

“I’ll be disappointed if I don’t win two or three more world titles. But I know I can do it.”

Van Gerwen has gone through a period of near-unbeatability on the PDC Tour, winning three world titles in 2014, 2017 and 2019.

The 35-year-old was once hailed to break Phil Taylor’s record of 16 world championships, but now sees that as a near-impossible task.

“No, but you never know. I still love what I do and as long as I continue to love what I do, then we’ll see,” he said.

“What else can I do? That’s the question I always ask myself, what else can I do?

“I don’t have enough other things or hobbies to fill that time. Of course, my kids and my wife are very important in my life, but darts is a very important part of my life and everyone knows that.

“They also know this is my life. I don’t just do it because it’s my job. I do it because I love it. It’s my passion. It’s my life. I’ve been doing this for the last 25 years.

“I’ve been with the PDC for almost 18 years and I’ve been in God knows how many games. So for me, it’s not a battle. It’s something I enjoy doing.”

Van Gerwen: Humphries and Littler are under a lot of pressure

Luke Humphries and Luke Littler are the two favorites for the World Championships, but they will meet in the semi-finals so there will be no repeat of last year’s final.

Van Gerwen is not in their half and he is most likely to reach the final from the drawn part, especially after Gary Anderson was dropped early on.

“I still know there are always eyes on me because everyone wants me out of the game,” van Gerwen said.

“Of course, there’s going to be a lot of pressure on both Lukes (Humphries and Littler), but it is what it is. You have to deal with the situation.

“If it’s right, left, I don’t care. I just have to make sure I keep performing. I’m going to keep winning games.

“When you do well, that’s what you pay for, you get the spotlight. Of course, you want to be in the spotlight. I think that’s fine. That’s what you want. Otherwise, you Not a professional, that’s all.”

Watch the World Darts Championship on Sky Sports

Live darts returns sky sports exist PDC World Darts Championship Following the Christmas holidays, a double session will be held over four consecutive days at Alexandra Palace, starting on Friday 27 December.

World number one Humphries will face Nick Kenny in Friday night’s match, while reigning Premier League champions Littler headlines Saturday night’s clash with Ian White.

Elsewhere, Van Gerwen takes on Dolan (Saturday) and former world champion Gwen Price entertains Joe Cullen (Friday).

Players have New Year’s Eve off before two quarter-finals on New Year’s Day, with the semi-finals on January 2 and the final on Friday, January 3.

The full schedule for this year’s competition can be found here.

Who will win the Paddy Power World Darts Championship? You can watch every match live exclusively on Sky Sports’ dedicated darts channel until January 3rd. Live stream darts and more top sports with NOW.