Preview Sunday afternoon Grand Slam of Darts headlined by Wade-Price and Van Veen-Nijman

Yesterday, Grand Slam of Darts 2025 kicked off. The first four days of the tournament traditionally feature the group stage. Sunday afternoon the second group matches are scheduled in pools B, D, F and H.

The Grand Slam of Darts is not similar to the other majors, for example, a group stage takes place first. In total, there are eight groups of four players, where after three matches played, the top two players from the group advance to the knockout stage. Luke Littler starts the tournament as the defending champion, after winning 16-3 over Martin Lukeman in last year's final.

The afternoon session in Wolverhampton opens with the duel between Martin Lukeman and Jurjen van der Velde, two players who lost their opening match by a thick margin. Lukeman reached the final last year and if he wants to repeat that feat, a win against Van der Velde is a must.

Van der Velde, on the other hand, went down 5-1 in his opening match against Chris Dobey. The young Dutchman also absolutely needs a win to stay in the running for qualification for the knockout stage. Lukeman and Van der Velde have already met three times. Twice Van der Velde won, but their last meeting was won by Lukeman.

Jonny Clayton surprisingly went down by heavy 5-1 figures in his opening match against Cameron Crabtree. 'The Ferret' therefore needs to recover in his second group match with preferably a big win against Lukas Wenig, to keep his chances cool towards qualification for the knockout stage.

Wenig missed quite a few chances to win in his opening match against Danny Noppert and eventually went down 5-4. Both men played each other three times in the past. Clayton won twice, but Wenig was victorious in their last meeting, last month at Players Championship 31.

Young Northern Irishman Josh Rock meets experienced Lisa Ashton in what promises to be an intriguing clash of generations. Rock confirms all the good things that have been said about him for a while this year, but a major title is still missing from his record. Moreover, Rock lost his first group match against Wessel Nijman.

Ashton, four-time women's world champion, can never be underestimated. Her experience and composure on big stages give her a chance against any opponent, as she also showed against Gian van Veen, whom she lost only exceedingly narrowly. This is only the first time Ashton and Rock have met in a PDC tournament.

An absolute top tie in Group D: James Wade against Gerwyn Price. What makes this clash even more interesting is that both men lost their first group match and therefore have to go full steam ahead. Another defeat could be fatal. Wade has already played two major finals this year and, at 42, is getting back to his best form.

Price also had an excellent year, although he is disappointed that he did not do as well at the majors. The Iceman' has his sights set on a strong autumn with first the Grand Slam of Darts and then the Players Championship and the World Darts Championship. Both men have not yet met in official tournaments this year, their last two meetings last year were each time a victory for Wade.

Ricky Evans is one of the fastest players on the circuit. The 35-year-old Englishman made an excellent start to this tournament by winning 5-4 over Gerwyn Price in his opening match. Evans went through a particularly difficult period early this year following the death of his sister, but just before the World Cup he seems to be getting back to his best form.

Stefan Bellmont of Switzerland is relatively new to the big stage and will have to work a lot to keep up with Evans' pace. Bellmont did show in his opening match what he is capable of with a 5-4 win against James Wade. Evans and Bellmont played each other once before; last year Evans won 6-1 at the 13th Players Championship.

Danny Noppert escaped defeat in his opening match against Lukas Wenig. Wenig left several match darts unused and 'The Freeze' was able to take advantage of that to clinch victory. Noppert can therefore start his second group match against Cam Crabtree without too much pressure.

Crabtree was too strong for Jonny Clayton in his opening match, 5-1. In that match, the young Englishman once again confirmed all the good things being said about him. In their only mutual match last year at the 13th Players Championship, Crabtree was 6-1 too strong for Noppert.

Next we get the Dutch clash between Gian van Veen and Wessel Nijman. A replay of their group match at last year's Grand Slam of Darts, when Van Veen managed to win 5-4. Van Veen will play with confidence anyway after his tournament victory at the European Darts Championship last month. The 23-year-old Dutchman has now nestled neatly into the top-10 of the world rankings.

Wessel Nijman is also having a great year. The 25-year-old Dutchman already won two Players Championships. Only on the majors it did not yet go smoothly for Nijman. Yesterday he made an excellent start at the Grand Slam of Darts by winning 5-4 in his opening match against Josh Rock. This match promises fireworks, with two players possessing enormous scoring power.

The afternoon session will be closed by Chris Dobey and Damon Heta. Two players who won their opening match and can therefore play freely. Dobey has won the Masters in the past and is aiming for a second major title.

Heta, on the other hand, invariably performs well at floor tournaments, but is often much less convincing at the majors. Will he still manage to add a majors title to his record this week?