Five must-watch matches from the first round of the 2023 World Matchplay

The World Matchplay will kick off next Saturday at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool. The top 16 in the world rankings will take on the 16 best on the Pro-Tour rankings in the first round.

This provides some great match-ups early on in the tournament. Dartsnews looks ahead to the five best duels from the first round of the 2023 World Matchplay.

Dave Chisnall (12) vs Gary Anderson

Saturday's third match will be played between two men who have already achieved success at the Matchplay; Chisnall was the 2014 runner-up and Anderson the 2018 champion. Anderson was previously always seeded as a top-16 player for the World Matchplay, but has fallen out of that top-16 after some lesser seasons. However, the Scot is in good form on the Pro-Tour this year. He won Players Champhionship 8, while Chisnall managed to grab two titles on the Euro Tour this year. So it is definitely worth seeing who will win the third match on opening night.

Damon Heta (14) vs. Josh Rock

The No. 14 seed takes on one of the great talents of the moment. Damon Heta won Players Chapionship 14, while Rock was the runner-up at the Austrian Darts Open and Players Champions 7 and 12. What could be the deciding factor in this match is that Heta is not performing very well on TV; he did not yet manage to get past the first round at both the World Matchplay and the World Grand Prix. Rock could immediately end his debut in Blackpool on Sunday afternoon with a victory.

Nathan Aspinall (9) vs Krzysztof Ratajski

The first match on Sunday night will be played between two fairly experienced Matchplay participants. Ratajski's best result in Blackpool was the semifinals in 2021, while quarterfinals in 2021 and 2022 represent Aspinall's best results at this tournament. Both players have already had good results this year, with a Euro Tour final for Aspinall and a Players Championship title for Ratajski.

Dimitri van den Bergh (10) vs Ross Smith

The match between van den Bergh and Ross Smith, the former Matchplay champion and reigning European champion, respectively, will be the first match of Monday night's match. Van den Bergh started 2023 excellently with semifinal finishes at both the World Cup and the UK Open. However, the Belgian also had a disappointing Premier League campaign and did not manage to advance beyond the third round on the Euro Tour this year. Last weekend, however, he reached the final of the World Series tournament in Poland. With the Belgian's shaky form, Ross Smith, who among other things took a title on the floor this year, would certainly have a chance to win a match at the World Matchplay for the first time.

Ryan Searle (15) vs. Raymond van Barneveld

This match, which will also take place on Monday night, is a repeat of the match-up at the European Darts Matchplay. Van Barneveld narrowly beat Searle 6-5 at that tournament to then reach the quarterfinals. Searle reached the finals of three Players Championship tournaments this year, one of which he managed to win. Will Barneveld be able to immediately cash in on his return to Blackpool with a victory in the first round or will Searle finally pick up his first win at the Word Matchplay.