Preview PDC World Cup of Darts 2018 Schedule - Day One

Unique in the darting calendar, the World Cup pits pairs against each other. At stake is the PDC World Cup of Darts trophy, as well as national pride and a cut of a £300,000 prize pot. The previous seven editions have all been won by England or the Netherlands. As they're the second and third seeds, they won't meet in the final. That means at least one nation will have a chance to write their name in the history books. But which one? Only time will tell.

The 2018 World Cup kicks off with a chalk-and-cheese Canadian coupling. John Part, the 51-year-old two-time world champion, has seen it all in his illustrious career. Partner Dawson Murschell, hailing from Medicine Hat, ain't seen nothing yet. The 22-year old replaces John Norman Jnr, meaning Canada should be a more sedate outfit this year. Their opponents, Italy, have won eight legs in seven World Cup matches. They're outsiders in every sense of the word.

Many saw Russia in the same light, before last year. The hosts of football's World Cup won't take too keen an interest in the darting equivalent, but the madcap duo of Boris Koltsov and the inimitable Aleksandr Oreshkin will surely delight neutrals. Plenty will be hoping that they repeat last year's trick, including an opening day win over Cristo Reyes and Antonio Alcinas of Spain. Alcinas will recall what it's like to be a victorious underdog, having famously stunned England eons ago. This time, the tables could be turned.

China don't attract much attention at their World Cup sojourns. Apart from Wenge Xie bringing the sort of innocent joy that almost rekindles all lost hope in humanity, that is. But all eyes will be on Momo Zhou when she and Xiaochen Zong take to the stage in Frankfurt. Zhou, the first female player since Anastasia Dobromyslova to appear at the event, cuts an inspirational figure. She and Zong are both good enough to deliver a win against a Switzerland side who rarely make an impact.

The Swiss were seen off last year by the Samba Boys, the Brazilian debutants who injected some colour into last year's World Cup. They're back again, Diogo Portela now partnered by Bruno Rangel, holding high hopes of winning another match at least. They have a tough prospect in store, however. Per Laursen captains Denmark, and while debutant Henrik Primdal doesn't cut an intimidating figure, the Scandinavians will feel they are the favourites.

Finalists last year, Wales' World Cup prospects are pretty strong. Gerwyn Price and Jonny Clayton are the fourth seeds, meaning they can't meet either England or the Netherlands until the final. Both are excellent players as well, and that will bode well for them when the singles element is introduced. They have to navigate a first round clash with Thailand first. Thanawat Gaweenuntawong and Attapol Eupakaree will probably succeed if their aim is to make Wayne Mardle trip over his own tongue. Taking out a genuine title contender might be beyond them.

Australia, who lost the 2012 final in the most dramatic of fashions, will be desperate for another crack at glory. Simon Whitlock and Kyle Anderson are both excellent. But they both have the same knack to go horribly off the boil, as evidenced by a dismal defeat to Russia a year ago. They can't allow the same complacency to set in against the Hong Kong pair of Ho-Yin Shek and perennial PDC Pro Tour no-show Royden Lam.

The top seeds should be the favourites. Yet there are persisting doubts about Peter Wright and Gary Anderson of Scotland. Somehow, the world numbers two and four have never settled at the World Cup, despite finishing runners-up once. Last year, the Scots blew their big chance at the first hurdle, beaten stunningly yet convincingly by Singapore. Wright has had a wretched 2018, and Anderson went missing at the Premier League play-offs. Yet the Dartan Army will be backing their men to the hilt. Given their obvious talents, this tilt at glory could be the one that sticks. First up is the USA, and another familiar line-up. Larry Butler and Darin Young had a battle on their hands to secure their spots this year. But they did it once again, so the task to Make American Darts Great Again is theirs.

The newly crowned German Darts Masters champion rounds off the Thursday session. Mensur Suljovic maintains his record of appearing at every World Cup. Having been partnered by Rowby-John Rodriguez at the last four events, this time Zoran Lerchbacher steps into the number two role. It's a tough start for the Austrian duo. Japan's representatives, Haruki Muramatsu and Seigo Asada, are potential dark horses. Asada was the first opponent felled by Rob Cross on his way to becoming world champion at the Ally Pally. Could he be the same good luck charm for Die Österreicher? Again, time will tell. It'll tell us a lot of things in the next four days of play.
Schedule of Play
Thursday May 31 (8pm local time)
First Round
Italy v Canada
Russia v Spain
Switzerland v China
Denmark v Brazil
Wales v Thailand
Australia v Hong Kong
Scotland v United States of America
Austria v Japan