Rob Cross claimed his first PDC ranking title of the year by defeating Maik Kuivenhoven 6-5 in the final of Players Championship 22 in Wigan. The victory marks a significant boost for the Englishman after a difficult spell.
Despite winning the tournament, Cross only posted the fifth-highest average of the day. His best performance came in the last 16, where he beat David Sharp 6-1 with a 104.73 average. The highest average belonged to Cristo Reyes, who opened his campaign with a stunning 111.03 average in a 6-1 win over William O'Connor. Reyes, who regained his PDC Tour Card at the start of this year after several seasons away, eventually fell in the last 16, losing 6-5 to Alexander Merkx.
Martin Schindler recorded the second-highest average of 108.19 in his second-round match against Gian van Veen, but remarkably lost 6-5 despite his high scoring. Van Veen averaged 103.60 himself. Connor Scutt completed the top three with a 105.90 average in a 6-4 second-round win over Kevin Doets, before losing 6-2 to Cross in the next round.
The Players Championship now takes a short break and resumes on Monday, 6 July, with the 23rd tournament of the year taking place in Leicester. However, players will be in action this weekend at the Slovak Darts Open in Bratislava, the ninth of fifteen events on the 2026 European Tour.
