Premier League Darts results: Stephen Ponting beats Gian van Veen to win fourth night in Belfast

Stephen Ponting silenced his critics when he inflicted a third final defeat of the season on Gian van Veen to win night four of the Premier League in Belfast.

The 40-year-old saw his place in the tournament questioned by spectators after failing to win a match in the first three weeks.

It came after ‘The Bullet’ took nine weeks to score a point at last year’s event – his first appearance since he was a competitor in 2020.

Ponting, who has stayed away from social media due to criticism, scored his highest average in the Premier League (106.63) in a 6-4 quarter-final win over defending champion Luke Humphries.

He backed that up with another 106 average in a 6-0 clean sweep against current league leaders Johnny Clayton in the semi-final, before a clinical 6-2 win over Van Veen in the final.

“I think I’m one of the best players in the world and I deserve to be in the Premier League,” Ponting told Sky Sports.

“Everyone was ruling me out, people were saying I shouldn’t be involved, but I know how hard I work behind the scenes. These are the nights I play.”

“Losing seven or eight games on the bounce last year really helped me, gave me a lot of experience in that area. When you play in the Premier League, you play against the best of the best. This is one of the best wins of my career.”

Van Veen, who is participating in the tournament for the first time, has excelled in reaching three finals in four weeks but is struggling to get over the line.

Northern Ireland’s Josh Rock, another newcomer this year, lost 6-2 to Van Veen in the quarter-finals but delighted the home fans with the first nine quarters of this year’s tournament.

Elsewhere, there was more disappointment for world number one Luke Littler, who lost 6-3 to Clayton in the quarter-finals, meaning he has won just one match in four weeks.