Andrew Gilding stuns Michael van Gerwen to win UK Open darts title

Andrew Gilding has stunned Michael van Gerwen in a final-leg decider to win the Cazoo UK Open in Minehead, claiming his first televised title at the age of 52.

It was the first time Gilding, ranked No 41 in the world before the event, had featured in a televised final while his opponent has claimed 45 major PDC titles. Van Gerwen made mistakes throughout the match, though, crucially missing five double attempts when he had a chance to extend his lead to 9-6.

Gilding fought back and edged out his illustrious opponent in thrilling fashion, taking the deciding leg in an 11-10 victory. The player known as “Goldfinger” threw seven 180s and had an average of 95.46 in the final, compared to Van Gerwen’s 96.74.

The Suffolk thrower reached Sunday’s final with an 11-6 victory over another outsider in Czech player Adam Gawlas, while Van Gerwen beat Dimitri Van den Bergh 11-6 in the other last-four encounter.

Gilding will now rise to No 25 on the PDC’s order of merit after eclipsing his previous best at a televised event, when he reached the UK Open semi-finals in 2015.