 Van Gerwen won all three of his group games at the Grand Slam of Darts to top Group B and face Phil Taylor in the last 16, in a match billed as a clash between the current best two players in the world.There, Van Gerwen ended a five-year, 15-game losing streak against Taylor to defeat him 10–5 with a 108.38 average in a performance he described as the best of his career.He played Scott Waites in the quarter-finals, who himself had already beaten Taylor in the tournament, and produced another superb display as he hit two 170 finishes and an average of 106.63 in a 16–12 win.