30/10/2020

European Championship 2020 preview and schedule: Friday 30 October evening session, including Van Gerwen, Wright and Price

The world's top three players converge in a star-studded European Championship evening session.

As well as Michael van Gerwen bidding for a fifth title, the world numbers two and three do battle. The biggest winner on day one of the European Championship also features - did someone say aubergines?

What a year this is turning out to be for Dirk van Duijvenbode. Even after his heroic World Grand Prix run, the number of people backing him to beat Danny Noppert were probably in the minority. In the end, he didn't beat him; Van Duijvenbode destroyed him. After that impressive display of floor-wiping, the Aubergenius poses a massive threat to whoever he plays.

Michael Smith will know that a big step up in quality is needed for this second round test. Thursday could've very easily been his last day of European Championship contention, with Ross Smith seeking another big scalp. But all credit to the Bully Boy - a very composed finish to the match turned things in his favour, and bodes well in case this one goes all the way.

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One of the great things about tournaments where the PDC Order of Merit doesn't decide the draw bracket is that you can get some wacky games early on. Either the world number two or three is definitely going home before the weekend as a result of it. A portentous opening day saw Gerwyn Price averaging 103.68, followed by Peter Wright averaging 104.73.

Wright's win was particularly notable as, for the most part, Gabriel Clemens gave him a real run for his money. Snakebite is ready to enjoy his darts again, which means we have a real treat on our hands. Price, as the world's most in-form player, just needs to stay the course and demand that every opponent rise to the challenge.

Michael van Gerwen's back again, it seems. Of course, he's unique in constantly being both 'back' and 'in crisis', with the verdict handed down by the darts intelligentsia changing on a leg-by-leg basis. It was a good opening win for Schrödinger's Dartist, making sure Darius Labanauskas couldn't claw his way into the game.

Ian White didn't grab any headlines with his win over Mervyn King, but the Diamond deserves praise for the professional way he set about dethroning the King. The win was mostly due to a very efficient start, which he'll desperately want against Van Gerwen. Both of these players have been known to get nervy, making it vital to get off on the right foot.

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The last of the second round ties in Oberhausen features, perhaps, the most surprising winner. Krzysztof Ratajski continues to suffer with the big stage blues, not for a lack of quality or bottle. In this case, Steve West simply saw his opportunity and grabbed it with both hands. It's reminiscent of his 2018 performance where, after edging a 6-5 opening win, he took it up a notch to beat Michael van Gerwen.

It'll be wise for Mensur Suljovic to be wary of West's threat. His Thursday evening victory over Daryl Gurney was unremarkable, in that a bright start quickly tailed off but remained unpunished thanks to Gurney being a shadow of his normal self. Suljovic is looking like he's mostly on his way back to his best, and reaching Saturday's play would be a great way to signpost that progress.