2021 PDC World Darts Championship schedule: Tuesday afternoon session including Wade and Gurney

Tuesday, 29 December 2020 at 08:30

James Wade and Daryl Gurney will face stern challenges to their PDC World Darts Championship credentials on Tuesday afternoon.

Monday saw some epic battles. Gerwyn Price versus Brendan Dolan. Aspinall versus Van Der Voort. Jose De Sousa versus the force of nature that is Mervyn King. Gary Anderson versus...the table plan?! The PDC World Darts Championship never fails to disappoint.

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Opportunity knocks for James Wade. An out-of-sorts Stephen Bunting is next up, and if he can do to him what he did to a misfiring Callan Rydz, it's unseeded Ryan Searle up next. After that, Gabriel Clemens or Krzysztof Ratajski, who are both already in uncharted territory. And then he's into the semi-finals. Could an elusive world title beckon for the Grand Slam runner-up?

Not so fast, though. Bunting will see the same potential to do some damage. He wasn't great against Andy Boulton, but had the nerve to claim the sudden death leg. The confidence boost that gives can't be ignored. Bunting is a big scorer when he gets in the groove, which could cause headaches for Wade.

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Like Bunting, Daryl Gurney and Chris Dobey have to see the PDC World Darts Championship as a moment of redemption, following a pretty rubbish season. Gurney in particular has been overtaken by players who weren't even on his radar a year ago. If he wants to be back in the Premier League and in the seeds for the biggest events, some more wins are needed now.

Gurney withheld a William O'Connor fightback to get here, while Chris Dobey silenced those who thought his Christmas goose was cooked when Jeff Smith established a 2-0 lead in their second round game. Dobey only got better as the game went on. Now the form is on its way back, the Bedlington thrower will feel much more equipped to see off Superchin.

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Every year, someone dashes Michael Smith's dream of becoming world champion, and 2020's Grinch figure is Jason Lowe. If Lowe was delighted at getting the biggest win of his professional darting career to date, you'd never have known it. Perhaps he'll crack out a smile if he seals a fourth round game against fellow miser Gary Anderson.

Devon Petersen is much like Dirk van Duijvenbode in that you feel that something has to click for the really good stuff to come out, otherwise what you get is a bit erratic. Dirk has found the spark at this PDC World Darts Championship; Petersen definitely didn't against Steve Lennon, but it's in there somewhere. He's a big scorer, but can be guilty of squandering a lot of chances at a finish, which is a vulnerability Lowe exploited so successfully when sending Smith home.