31/01/2020

The Masters 2020 preview and schedule: Friday January 31

Just under a month after the World Championship ended, the Masters kicks off the 2020 PDC season.

The interminable wait for darts to come back was at least mitigated by the BDO World Championship, and the drama of Q-School. We reconvene in Milton Keynes for the traditional curtain-raiser. If you haven't seen the Masters before, it's simple enough; the world's top 16 meet for three days of play, and at the end of it Michael van Gerwen takes the trophy home.

But who knows? Peter Wright's Ally Pally triumph has taught us that perseverance can pay off. Michael Smith and Mensur Suljovic will certainly hope so. Neither has a major title, and both suffered at the World Championship. Smith was scuppered by Luke Woodhouse, while Suljovic fell victim to the Fallon Sherrock phenomenon. Both will target a decent run at the Masters as a means of starting 2020 in much brighter fashion.

Smith and Suljovic might have had a bumpy 2019, but Nathan Aspinall had a blast. The UK Open champion reached a second successive World Championship semi-final, and makes his Masters debut as eighth seed. The rising star takes on the last man to win this title that isn't called Michael. James Wade had his best run since his 2014 triumph 12 months ago, and will be looking at more of the same.

The Masters 2020 preview and schedule: Friday January 31 — Photo: Pieter Verbeek/PV-Darts

The Masters features the top 16 in the PDC Order of Merit, so there's no real David v Goliath tie. But odds-wise, this is as skewed as it gets. Michael van Gerwen has won his last 20 matches in this tournament, winning five titles on the spin. Jonny Clayton made his debut last year, and lost 10-5 in the first round to - you guessed it - van Gerwen. But will Mighty Mike's World Championship disappointment and possible rustiness after a break give the Ferret a window of opportunity?

Rob Cross and Adrian Lewis bring the first stage session of the season to a close. Fourth seed Cross has yet to have a Masters run worth shouting about, while Lewis joined his opponent in exiting at the first hurdle last year. Voltage has more of a point to prove, having played far below par in a World Championship defeat to Kim Huybrechts. The winner of this tie plays Smith or Suljovic in the quarter-finals; meanwhile, Aspinall or Wade will meet van Gerwen or Clayton.