Bradford darts ace Joe Cullen claims European Tour title with International Open victory over Michael van Gerwen

It was a repeat of Cullen's previous success, when he beat Van Gerwen by the same score in the final of the 2019 European Darts Matchplay last September.

The win means Cullen tops the final 2020 European Tour Order of Merit and will go into the Unibet European Championship as number one seed.

"It was the same scoreline as last time [the 2019 European Darts Matchplay], but the difference this time was Michael just didn't get going," Cullen admitted.

"It was lucky for me that he didn't, because if he did then it would've been a different game.

"I didn't think I was too great either. It is a confidence-builder, but I honestly don't think I played well this tournament.

"That said, the closest I came to losing was against Ross [Smith] in the quarter-finals. I just did enough to win every game.

"It's amazing to pick up this title in front of a crowd, we all miss the fans."

Cullen both out-scored and out-finished the world number one in the final, ending the match with an average of almost six-points more than his opponent.

Van Gerwen, who had grown into the tournament after two below-par displays in his first two matches, got off to an ideal start with a 116 checkout, but it was Cullen who struck the first break of throw with a 13-dart leg to take a 4-2 lead.

He then held throw three times without Van Gerwen attempting a double to break, before producing a 14-dart break of throw in the final leg, pinning double top to seal the £25,000 top prize.

Cullen's campaign began with 6-1 routs of Robert Marijanovic and Dave Chisnall, before he edged out Ross Smith 6-4 in the quarter-finals and defeated Michael Smith 7-3 to claim a place in the final.