Swiss Darts Trophy: Kuivenhoven knocks out Van Barneveld as Rob Cross averages 105.95 in Basel

Raymond van Barneveld's stay at the Swiss Darts Trophy lasted a single match. Maik Kuivenhoven beat the five-time world champion 6-3 at Basel's St. Jakobshalle on Friday. Rob Cross had the best average of the opening day, while Joe Cullen and Cameron Menzies also lost. Sixteen first-round winners now go through to face the seeded players, who start their campaigns on Saturday.

This follows our preview of the Basel event, which covered the withdrawals of Gerwyn Price, Gary Anderson and Nathan Aspinall. It also covered Stephen Bunting's title defence. Now the first results are in.

Van Barneveld beaten after missing five match darts

Van Barneveld led for long spells against his fellow Dutchman. He had five darts to win the match but could not take any of them. Kuivenhoven averaged 92.89 to Van Barneveld's 87.40 and closed out a 6-3 win. The PDC noted that this was his first win over the veteran in almost five years. His prize is a second-round match with Welsh star Jonny Clayton.

Michael Smith was also in danger before scraping through. He trailed Rob Owen 3-1, then won 6-4 and finished the match with an 80 checkout on double 10. Dave Chisnall was luckier still. He missed two match darts against Alan Soutar, and the Scot then missed one at double 16 in the deciding leg. Chisnall took the 11th leg to win 6-5, even though Soutar averaged 90.12 to his 82.52.

Cross sets the standard as Cullen and Menzies fall

In the afternoon session, Cross beat Belgium's Mario Vandenbogaerde 6-3 with a 105.95 average. Vandenbogaerde averaged 100.81 and still lost. Bradley Brooks also won a high-scoring match, coming from 4-2 down to beat Niels Zonneveld 6-4. Both players averaged more than 100.

Tom Bissell beat Joe Cullen 6-5 in a scrappy last-leg decider, with averages of 81.36 and 84.70. Cristo Reyes averaged 98.03 to beat Cameron Menzies 6-4. William O'Connor (6-1 over Jani Haavisto), Mensur Suljovic, Niko Springer and Karel Sedlacek also won their matches.

A night to remember for the Swiss

Stefan Bellmont, 37, gave the home crowd plenty to cheer. He trailed former UK Open champion Andrew Gilding 3-1, then won five legs in a row to win 6-3. According to Darts World, he is only the third Swiss player to win a match at this event. Bruno Stoeckli lost 6-3 to Dirk van Duijvenbode, but his 98.10 average was the best ever recorded by a Swiss player on the European Tour. Alexander Fehlmann lost 6-2 to Damon Heta.

Kevin Doets hit a 146 checkout on his way to a 6-3 win over Nick Kenny. Jeffrey de Graaf beat Sietse Lap 6-4, finishing with a 121 checkout, and now faces defending champion Bunting.

Dortmund places on the line

Basel is the second-last European Tour event before the European Championship in Dortmund, which runs from 22 to 25 October. Only the top 32 players on the European Tour rankings qualify. Darts World's pre-event standings had Cullen in 33rd and Sebastian Bialecki in 34th, so first-round defeats hurt both of them. Reyes, who was holding the 32nd and final spot, helped his chances with his win. Sedlacek's 6-4 comeback against Bialecki also kept his own hopes alive.

Saturday's second round and Malaysia start times

The 16 seeds play in two sessions on Saturday. The afternoon session starts at 1pm local time (7pm in Malaysia). It includes Krzysztof Ratajski v Bellmont, Wessel Nijman v Sedlacek, Luke Woodhouse v Cross and Martin Schindler v Bissell. The evening session starts at 7pm local time (1am Sunday in Malaysia). It features Luke Humphries v Doets, Michael van Gerwen v Suljovic, Bunting v De Graaf and Clayton v Kuivenhoven. The last 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals and final are all on Sunday 11 October. The champion wins £35,000 from a £230,000 prize fund.

Key takeaways

• Maik Kuivenhoven beat Raymond van Barneveld 6-3 after Van Barneveld missed five match darts.
• Rob Cross had the best average of day one, 105.95, in a 6-3 win over Mario Vandenbogaerde.
• Joe Cullen and Cameron Menzies lost in round one. Cullen's defeat hurts his hopes of reaching the European Championship.
• Stefan Bellmont came from 3-1 down to beat Andrew Gilding in front of his home crowd.
• The seeds start on Saturday, and the title will be decided on Sunday 11 October.

FAQ

When does the Swiss Darts Trophy 2026 finish? The final is on Sunday 11 October in Basel, after the last 16, quarter-finals and semi-finals earlier that day.

What time are Saturday's sessions in Malaysia? The afternoon session starts at 7pm Malaysia time and the evening session at 1am on Sunday.

Who is the defending champion? Stephen Bunting won in 2025. He opens his defence against Jeffrey de Graaf in Saturday's evening session.

Sources: DartsNews, Darts World, dartn.de, PDC