Schedule Friday night at Swiss Darts Trophy including Menzies-Clayton, Van Barneveld-Cullen and Wright-Veenstra

There are some great matches ahead on Friday night, when the last eight duels of the first round at the Swiss Darts Trophy 2024 are played.

It is the first time the PDC has hosted a tournament in Switzerland. Earlier this year, Euro Tour tournaments were played in Belgium, Germany, Austria, the Netherlands and Hungary. Another event in the Czech Republic will be completed later this year.

In the first match of the evening, Jermaine Wattimena will battle Ritchie Edhouse. Wattimena still has a small chance to qualify for the World Grand Prix, but will have to reach at least the semifinals this weekend. Edhouse has already secured participation in the double-in double-out tournament.

Dirk van Duijvenbode has an important weekend awaiting him in Basel. He will not be there next month at the Czech Darts Open and so this weekend is his last chance to gain pounds in the qualifying race for the European Championship. 'Aubergenius' will probably have to reach at least the third round to qualify for the European Championship. If he reaches the quarterfinals, he can also dream of participating in the World Grand Prix. First of all, he has to deal with Anton Östlund, who made it through the qualifying tournament of the Nordic & Baltic region.

Dimitri van den Bergh is currently still outside the qualifying spots for the European Championship. 'The Dreammaker' has a tough draw for the first round, as he meets James Wade. Van den Bergh has been struggling in recent weeks, losing his last four matches, but Wade has shown good form with a semi-final at Players Championship 22.

Raymond van Barneveld will also be in action on Friday night. The five-time world champion will square off with Joe Cullen, who is also not in the best of form. The winner of this match will also meet the injured Ricardo Pietreczko in the second round. Van Barneveld in particular can use the extra prize money in his quest to qualify for the European Championship.

Another attractive bill is that between Cameron Menzies and Jonny Clayton. Menzies has been in excellent form for weeks and has already secured participation in the World Grand Prix. The Scot also still has a chance of European Championship participation, but will have to win some matches at the last two Euro Tours. Clayton does not suffer from qualification stress, and also showed fine form this week with two quarter-finals on the Pro Tour.

Peter Wright and Richard Veenstra will decide between them who will face Luke Humphries in the second round of the Swiss Darts Trophy. In his five previous appearances he only once failed to make it past the second round. Wright also won his opening match on each of his last four Euro Tours.

Nathan Aspinall is one of the top players who has not yet secured entry to the European Championship. With Marcel Walpen as an opponent, 'The Asp' does not have an unfavorable draw at this tournament. Walpen passed the qualification tournament for Swiss darts on Thursday, so he can play in front of his own audience at the first Euro Tour tournament ever held in Switzerland.

The evening will conclude with a friendly between good friends Ian White and Michael Smith. White had not originally qualified for this event, but was flown in due to cancellations by Michael van Gerwen and Ryan Joyce. Smith will also have to put his best foot forward to force participation in the European Championship. 'Bullyboy' is currently 31st in the qualifying race for this tournament.

The Swiss Darts Trophy will be broadcast on PDC TV. As usual with Euro Tour tournaments, the Swiss Darts Trophy consists of three tournament days. The afternoon sessions start on Friday and Saturday at 13:00, while the evening sessions then start at 19:00. On Sunday, the sessions start at 12:00 and 18:00.

The first round will take place on Friday. The 16 Order of Merit qualifiers and the winners from the various qualifying tournaments then make their appearance. The top-16 seeded players enter the tournament on Saturday in the second round. Sunday will see the denouement of the tournament, starting with the third round in the afternoon session. Sunday evening will be followed by the quarterfinals, semifinals and finals.

At this Euro Tour tournament, a total of £175,000 in prize money will be divided among the 48 participants. They will receive at least 1250 pounds in starting money. The top-16 seeded players who enter the Swiss Darts Trophy from the second round will receive 2,500 pounds anyway.

They do - like the 16 Order of Merit qualifiers starting in the first round - have to win their first match in order for the prize money to count toward the world rankings and the other rankings. The winner of the Swiss Darts Trophy ultimately goes home with the top prize of 30,000 pounds.

First round: Best of 11 legs

Second round: Best of 11 legs

Third round: Best of 11 legs

Quarterfinals: Best of 11 legs

Semifinals: Best of 13 legs

Final: Best of 15 legs

Ritchie Edhouse v Jermaine Wattimena

Anton Ostlund v Dirk van Duijvenbode

Dimitri Van den Bergh v James Wade

Joe Cullen v Raymond van Barneveld

Cameron Menzies v Jonny Clayton

Peter Wright v Richard Veenstra

Marcel Walpen v Nathan Aspinall

Ian White v Michael Smith