Mardle on Van Gerwen ahead of World Championship: "If he does do the right things at the right times, I don't see anyone matching him"

The PDC World Championship begins this evening and Wayne Mardle has given his thoughts on Michael van Gerwen ahead of the showpiece event beginning at the Alexandra Palace.

Mardle believes that if he's on his game, Van Gerwen won't be stopped over the next few weeks.

"He must be coming into this event thinking: 'I've won it three times before, normally it's off the back of dominating the world of darts'. He's coming into it in a different way and I think it may keep him more alert," said Mardle to Sky Sports.

"There's always that element that he knows he's so far better than the rest, well he's not now. That may keep him on the straight and narrow and keep him concentrated and if it does, he's going to be a hard man to beat because he's in a quarter that I think he'll be really happy with.

The composure he had against Mervyn King was a step in the right direction. If he holds it together, I think he wins the whole thing, but this is an event with set-play, where pressure comes and goes more often than any other format.

You have got to be brilliant in the right moments and look how often he says that. 'I did the right things at the right times'. If he does do the right things at the right times, I don't see anyone matching him."

Smith and Wade as potential outsiders

While in terms of outsiders, he has picked Michael Smith and James Wade to potentially have runs this time around.

"I quite like Michael Smith's draw. I don't think he will. It's tough but I really believe if he can get past the first couple of rounds, I don't think the latter few rounds to get through to the semi-finals will bother him.

He's got Devon Petersen in the last 32 and probably Gary Anderson or Mensur Suljovic in the last 16. In my opinion, I think it could get easier for him.

I don't see Rob Cross, Jamie Hughes, Glen Durrant or Adrian Lewis being a danger to him. I don't think they can match him for scoring. He's going to get so many darts at double that I think he wins against any of those."

"James Wade must love his draw. The only players that beat Wade at the moment seem to be the consistent types. He lost in the final of the European Championship to the consistent Wright, he lost in the Grand Slam to the consistent Jose de Sousa.

I don't see a consistent type in his section apart from Ian White, and Ian White underwhelms too often. I really like James Wade's play at the moment."