Home Hero Ratajski Stuns Clayton at Poland Darts Masters Day 1
- Darts Central
- Jul 4
- 5 min read
Day 1 at the PreZero Arena in Gliwice may not have delivered the highest standard of darts we've seen this year, but the passionate Polish crowd were rewarded with a standout display from their home hero, Krzysztof Ratajski. ‘The Polish Eagle’ dumped out World No.5 Jonny Clayton with a ton-plus average in the performance of the night.
Elsewhere, the remaining seven PDC elite all progressed with minimal fuss to set up a star-studded quarter-final line-up.
Let’s take a look at the eight Last 16 encounters…
Chris Dobey 6-1 György Jehirszki
It was smooth sailing for ‘Hollywood’ in the opening match, as Dobey raced into a commanding 5–0 lead with a composed and confident display. He produced standout finishes of 167 and 170 along the way, showcasing his big-finish ability.
To his credit, Jehirszki remained steady and finally got on the board with a superb 14-dart hold for 5–1. But Dobey wasn’t to be denied, sealing the win with a third ton-plus checkout, a clinical 110 to coast into the quarter-finals.
Match Stats:
Dobey: 100.84 average, 1x 180, 75% on Doubles (6/8)
Jehirszki: 86.25 average, 1x 180, 50% on Doubles (1/2)
Gerwyn Price 6-3 Sebastian Białecki
Price took early control of this one, storming into a 5–1 lead as Białecki was left to rue missed opportunities. While Price cruised through the opener, the young Pole squandered at least one dart at a double in four of the next five legs, chances that ‘The Iceman’ clinically punished.
A nervy finish followed, though, as Price missed a staggering 11 match darts across two legs, allowing Białecki to pull a couple back. Eventually, on his 12th match dart, Price sealed it on double 2 to book his place in the quarter-finals.
Match Stats:
Price: 88.22 average, 3x 180s, 26.09% on Doubles (6/23)
Białecki: 85.93 average, 1x 180, 17.65% on Doubles (3/17)
Rob Cross 6-2 Krzysztof Kciuk
Cross took charge of a scrappy affair early on, racing into a 4–0 lead despite an inconsistent display. Legs one and four were stunning legs in 13 and 12 darts, but legs two and three were laboured, won in 24 and 18 darts respectively.
Kciuk began to show signs of life by claiming the next two legs to reduce the deficit to 4–2. However, a 15-dart hold settled Cross, and a messy final leg, featuring multiple missed doubles from both, eventually saw ‘Voltage’ wrap up the match with a 20-dart break.
Match Stats:
Cross: 85.36 average, 1x 180, 35.29% on Doubles (6/17)
Kciuk: 81.09 average, 2x 180s, 20% on Doubles (2/10)
Michael van Gerwen 6-4 Pero Ljubić
An underwhelming start saw the opening four legs shared, all breaks of throw with a combined 14 darts at double missed between the pair. MvG then found a gear, stringing together back-to-back 18-darters followed by a 15-darter to surge into a 5–2 lead.
Ljubić showed real resilience, firing in two 15-dart legs of his own and taking out 78 and 84 with last-dart-in-hand finishes to pull it back to 5–4. But despite the fightback, the Croatian couldn’t force a decider, a 21-dart leg saw him fall short, and Van Gerwen pinned double 10 with his first match dart to scrape over the line.
Match Stats:
MvG: 84.71 average, 2x 180s, 31.58% on Doubles (6/19)
Ljubić: 82.69 average, 1x 180, 30.77% on Doubles (4/13)
Stephen Bunting 6-3 Tytus Kanik
Kanik missed three darts at double in the opening leg to take the lead, and Bunting immediately punished to get on the board. From there, the match settled into a run of five routine holds, with Bunting edging ahead 4–2.
Kanik then missed three darts at double 16 to make it 4-3, and Bunting capitalised once more with a break to move one away. The Pole responded with a superb 14-darter to make it 5–3, but his doubling struggles continued, three more misses at the outer ring handed Bunting the chance to wrap it up, which he did in 18 darts.
Match Stats:
Bunting: 87.57 average, 2x 180s, 50% on Doubles (6/12)
Kanik: 88.82 average, 2x 180s, 21.43% on Doubles (3/14)
Luke Littler 6-4 Karel Sedláček
Both players missed chances to hold in the opening two legs, trading early breaks. What followed was a run of five routine holds, with Littler edging in front at 4–3. Sedláček then missed a dart at the bull to level again, and ‘The Nuke’ stepped in to take out 120 for a crucial break and a 5–3 lead.
The Czech responded brilliantly with a 14-dart break to close the gap, but missed two darts to force a decider, and Littler made him pay. He completed a 76 checkout with his final dart in hand to seal the 6–4 win, cupping his ears to the crowd in celebration after a chorus of whistles.
Match Stats:
Littler: 97.88 average, 6x 180s, 46.15% on Doubles (6/13)
Sedláček: 97.58 average, 2x 180s, 44.44% on Doubles (4/9)
Krzysztof Ratajski 6-3 Jonny Clayton
The opening four legs were shared, with Clayton the early aggressor, outscoring his opponent but failing to take control due to missed doubles. A costly miscount from the Welshman in leg five saw him take out 113 when he needed 123, and Ratajski punished to move 3–2 in front.
Clayton responded with a superb 11-darter to level, but narrowly missed double 16 to edge back ahead. That proved to be the turning point, as Ratajski pounced again and didn’t allow Clayton another dart at a double, closing out the final two legs in 13 and 15 darts to seal an impressive 6–3 win.
Match Stats:
Ratajski: 100.31 average, 2x 180s, 75% on Doubles (6/8)
Clayton: 99.59 average, 3x 180s, 33.33% on Doubles (3/9)
Nathan Aspinall 6-4 Radek Szagański
A strong start from Aspinall saw him race into a 4–0 lead, taking out big finishes of 136 and 121 along the way. Szagański struggled early, having just three darts at double, all in leg two, but failed to convert any to hold. The Pole finally notched his first leg with a tidy 17-dart hold before Aspinall responded with a 15-darter to move 5–1 ahead.
Szagański then mounted a fightback, hitting a 14-dart hold followed by back-to-back 17-darters to narrow the gap to 5–4, capitalising on Aspinall squandering two match darts at 6–3. After more missed match darts in leg ten from Aspinall, the Stockport star finally closed it out on double 3, with Szagański unable to get close in the final leg.
Match Stats:
Aspinall: 87.19 average, 3x 180s, 31.58% on Doubles (6/19)
Szagański: 87.19 average, 0x 180s, 40% on Doubles (4/10)
Quarter-Final Line-Up
(1) Stephen Bunting vs. Krzysztof Ratajski
(4) Nathan Aspinall vs. Luke Littler
(2) Gerwyn Price vs. Chris Dobey
(3) Rob Cross vs. Michael van Gerwen
Attention now turns to the finals session on Saturday evening at the PreZero Arena, where the quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final will all be decided. Seven of the PDC elite remain in pursuit of glory, but home hero Krzysztof Ratajski will be confident of causing an upset if he can replicate his stunning opening performance.
Stay tuned as the Poland Darts Masters continues to unfold, delivering drama and excitement right to Gliwice.
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