World Darts Championship: Gerwyn Price knocked out by Gabriel Clemens

Gerwyn Price played rugby union for Neath, Cross Keys and Glasgow Warriors and rugby league for South Wales Scorpions

World number one Gerwyn Price has said he may not play in the World Darts Championship again after wearing ear defenders in a 5-1 quarter-final loss.

The Welshman donned the ear defenders during the fifth set and switched to ear plugs for the sixth in an effort to block out noise from the crowd.

Price won the first set but Gabriel Clemens played superbly to become the first German to reach the semi-finals.

"Not sure I will ever play in this event again." said 2021 champion Price.

He added on his Instagram page: "So frustrating you play all year round preparing for this one tournament. So gutted I wasn't let play but good luck everyone left in."

The 37-year-old former rugby player had been wearing the ear defenders while practising and three-time World Championship runner-up Wayne Mardle said Price's actions were those of a man showing vulnerability.

"It shows there is a bit of frailty there. I get why he did it, he wanted to put on an elaborate show," added Mardle on Sky Sports.

Michael van Gerwen, Michael Smith and Dimitri van den Bergh join Clemens in the final four.

Three-time winner Van Gerwen progressed by beating England's Chris Dobey 5-0.

Van Gerwen has won four major titles already this year and only dropped three legs in the match.

"I feel good, I feel comfortable," the 33-year-old said after the match. "It was phenomenal with the crowd behind me."

Earlier, Smith and Van den Bergh moved into the last four with 5-3 victories in their quarter-finals.

Smith - the beaten finalist last year - ousted fellow Englishman Stephen Bunting, while Belgium's Van den Bergh knocked out Welshman Jonny Clayton.

It is the first time Van den Bergh, 28, has reached a world semi-final.

Clayton, 48, led by one set three times in his quarter-final, but was repeatedly pegged back by Van den Bergh.

The Belgian, who won the World Matchplay in 2020, eventually moved ahead in the seventh set and wrapped up the match in the eighth.

"I'm feeling like I'm one step closer to making my dreams come true," Van den Bergh - the first Belgian to reach a world semi-final - said after the match.

"It was a real battle, but I managed to pull through."

Smith, who won the Grand Slam of Darts in November, raced to a 4-1 set lead in the second quarter-final.

Bunting fought back to close the gap to one but Smith, 32, won the eighth set to reach the semi-finals for the third time in his career.

"I managed to dig deep when I needed it and I managed to fall over the line and still get the win," he said.