Belgian star Dimitri van den Bergh sensationally won his first televised ranking title at the 2020 Betfred World Matchplay on Sunday, overcoming former champion Gary Anderson with a dominant 18-10 victory in an all Team Unicorn final.
In his debut year at the event, the young Belgian claimed the Phil Taylor trophy in emphatic style at the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes, averaging almost 100 and hitting four ton-plus finishes along the way.
A nervy start to the final saw the pair struggling to score freely, with both players averaging just 87 going in to the first break, Van den Bergh leading 3-2.
The quality significantly increased during the second session, with both players adding a handful of points on to their averages. Five consecutive holds
Gary Anderson and Dimitri Van den Bergh will clash in an all Team Unicorn Betfred World Matchplay final on Sunday evening after battling through thrilling semi-final contests in Milton Keynes.
The £700,000 tournament will conclude on Sunday as Scottish ace Anderson challenges for his second title in three years after seeing off Michael Smith 18-16 in a tie-break.
Van den Bergh, meanwhile, became the first debutant to win through to the final since James Wade in 2006 with a narrow 17-15 defeat of Glen Durrant in another exciting contest.
Anderson lifted the Phil Taylor Trophy in 2018 and remains on course for another success in the tournament after surviving Smith's fightback.
Team Unicorn star Dimitri Van den Bergh set up a tantalising semi-final against Glen Durrant at the Betfred World Matchplay with a gutsy victory over Adrian Lewis on Friday, rising upto a career high World no.17 in the process.
Debutant Van den Bergh, held off Lewis' fightback from 8-2 down to claim a 16-12 win and reach the semi-finals on his debut in the World Matchplay.
Another exciting night of action in the £700,000 event at Milton Keynes' Marshall Arena began as the Belgian secured a spot in his first televised individual semi-final in style.
Lewis cut the gap to three legs at one stage, but Van den Bergh punished some key missed doubles as he pulled clear to continue a remarkable week, averaging almost 100 and finishing 41% of his darts
2018 champion Gary Anderson will face Michael Smith in a tasty all Team Unicorn semi-final of the 2020 Betfred World Matchplay after the pair defeated Simon Whitlock and Krzysztof Ratajski respectively at the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes on Thursday night.
Smith began the night with a dogged display to overcome Polish number one Ratajski with a 16-13 win, before Anderson went on to secure his spot in the final four with a hard-fought win over Michael van Gerwen’s conqueror, Simon Whitlock.
Anderson, who came into the match on the back of a second round win over James Wade, began the match the brighter of the pair, taking a 4-1 lead into the opening interval.
The second session began with the players exchanging a handful of 180s
Belgian star Dimitri Van den Bergh booked his spot in the last eight of the behind closed doors Betfred World Matchplay in Milton Keynes, in his first year at the tournament, defeating Joe Cullen 11-9 in a scrappy all Team Unicorn encounter.
The match began with Cullen, who had match-darts to defeat Gary Anderson in the 2018 Matchplay quarter-final, taking a 3-2 lead in to the opening break despite two ton plus finishes from his opponent.
A further break of throw followed for Cullen as he moved 5-2 ahead before