PDC Order of Merit Update: Peter Wright on the verge of dropping out the world's top 16

Peter Wright’s place in the PDC elite is under serious threat after a tough week at the Players Championship events in Hildesheim. The two-time world champion has fallen three spots in the Order of Merit, dropping to 16th — just £1,000 ahead of Danny Noppert, who now sits just outside the top 16.

Wright’s form has been patchy for the last couple of years, and with prize money from previous runs beginning to fall off his tally, Snakebite is in danger of exiting the top 16 for the first time in years. The race around the cutoff has tightened, with Noppert — a consistent top-16 fixture himself in recent seasons — also losing ground.

While Wright and Noppert stumbled, Ross Smith stole the spotlight with one of the best performances of the season so far. Smudger rocketed up three places to 14th in the world after a sensational Players Championship title run, in which he threw two nine-darters and won an incredible 24 consecutive legs. It marked a return to form for Smith, who briefly broke into the top 10 before falling back when his 2022 European Championship earnings dropped from the rankings.

There was also a resurgence for Krzysztof Ratajski, who captured the other Players Championship title in Hildesheim. The Polish number one is back inside the top 32 after overtaking Jermaine Wattimena and Dirk van Duijvenbode to move into 31st place.