PREVIEW PDC World Darts Championship Saturday afternoon: Jonny Clayton and Andrew Gilding continue Ally Pally quest

Christmas is over, and the players who survived their first two matches return to Ally Pally from Saturday, December 27 for the World Darts Championship. It is the first afternoon session after the short Christmas break.

The first third-round match pits Wesley Plaisier, who shocked Gerwyn Price, against Poland’s Krzysztof Ratajski. After that, we get one of the form men of this tournament, Andrew Gilding. He faces compatriot Luke Woodhouse. The third and final tie of the afternoon features the next Dutchman, Niels Zonneveld, against Welshman Jonny Clayton.

We open the afternoon session with Wesley Plaisier facing Poland’s Krzysztof Ratajski. Plaisier produced a superb display in the second round against world number 9 Gerwyn Price. The Dutchman averaged a solid 94-plus to Price’s 95. But Plaisier did everything right at the crucial moments. In the first set, the opening three legs went with throw, but after Price missed one dart to level at 2-2, Plaisier pinned tops to break and move 1-0 ahead. In the third set he went 2-0 up, and after Price pulled a leg back he also moved 2-0 up in sets. The third set went to a deciding leg. Once again Price missed two darts to stay alive, allowing Plaisier to seal it on double 10 and beat ‘The Iceman’ 3-0.

He now meets Ratajski in his third match of this Worlds. Ratajski also played a strong match against Ryan Joyce. In the first set he broke the Englishman in the third leg, then hit a 135 checkout to hold and go 1-0 up. In the second set he led 2-1 again, and after Joyce missed three darts, Ratajski pulled away to a 2-0 lead via double 8. ‘Relentless’ then convincingly took the third set 3-0, but Ratajski was unfazed. The Pole won the fourth set by the same score to secure his spot in the third round. On paper, ‘The Polish Eagle’ will be the favorite given his ranking and experience. But Plaisier has already shown against Price that he can knock out big names. And let’s be honest, if you can beat ‘The Iceman’, why not Ratajski too?

Next up sees Andrew Gilding plays his third match against Luke Woodhouse. Gilding caused a minor upset in round two by convincingly beating world number 8 Chris Dobey. He started with a 134 checkout, though he ultimately dropped that set to Dobey. He then dominated the second set 3-0 to level. In the third set he led 2-1 before firing a spectacular 10-darter to finally move in front. The fourth and ultimately decisive set went to a fifth and deciding leg, which Gilding claimed to win the match 3-1.

Woodhouse had few problems with Germany’s Max Hopp in his second-round tie. He started strongly and swept the first set 3-0 with a 12-darter, 14-darter, and 16-darter. He then won the second set by the same score to cruise into a 2-0 lead in sets. In the third set the German finally got on the board, but that was as far as it went. He missed too many doubles, allowing Woodhouse to take the third set 3-1 and wrap up a 3-0 win to book his place in the last 32 after Christmas. The match between Gilding and Woodhouse could be very tight. But if we have to name a favorite, ‘Goldfinger’ seems to have a slight edge based on his recent performances at this Worlds.

Finally, we also see the second Dutchman take to the stage. Niels Zonneveld faces Welshman Jonny Clayton in the third round. Zonneveld produced an excellent second-round performance against former world champion Michael Smith. He broke ‘Bully Boy’ in the opening leg and then convincingly took the first set 3-1. Smith offered more resistance in the second set and leveled at 1-1.

The Englishman then moved 2-1 up in the third set, but Zonneveld held to make it 2-2 and force a decider. In that deciding leg, Smith missed one dart at tops to go ahead. The Dutchman then nailed tops to break Smith and lead 2-1. He really hurt Smith in the fourth set. Checkouts of 70 and 77 made it 2-0, and he closed the match with a 94 checkout in 12 darts to pull off a minor upset.

Clayton was actually due to face England’s Dom Taylor in the second round. However, Taylor tested positive in a drug test after his opening match, was immediately disqualified, and Jonny Clayton advanced automatically to the second round. On paper, ‘The Ferret’ will be the favorite, but Zonneveld has shown he can beat big names and certainly has a chance to trouble Clayton as well.