Schedule Monday night World Matchplay 2025 featuring Van Gerwen-Van Barneveld, Gerwyn Price and Ross Smith-Josh Rock

Monday night, July 21, the final four matches from the first round of the World Matchplay 2025 will be completed. Highlight of the evening will be between Michael van Gerwen and Raymond van Barneveld.

The tournament at the Winter Gardens is the second largest ranking tournament of the year. With a prize pool of 800,000 pounds, players can take a big hit in the world rankings. The field of participants at the World Matchplay consists of 32 players. The top 16 of the PDC Order of Merit are seeded in the first round, and the 16 best Pro Tour players complete the lineup.
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Luke Humphries started the tournament as the defending champion, after being too strong 18-15 to Dutchman Michael van Gerwen in last year's final. However, Humphries is already back home after a 10-8 first-round defeat to Gian van Veen. Below we preview the four matches from Monday night's session.

The first match of the evening is between Chris Dobey and Ricardo Pietreczko. Dobey and the World Matchplay have not exactly been a success for the time being. In five previous appearances, he failed three times in the first round, once in the second round and once in the quarterfinals. However, Dobey is in form this year. After reaching the semifinals at the World Darts Championship earlier this year, he also won two Players Championships. Hollywood' has climbed to sixth place in the world rankings;

Dobey therefore starts his tie against Pietreczko as the favorite. The 30-year-old German is attending the World Matchplay for the second consecutive time. Last year he lost in the opening round after a 10-4 defeat to eventual winner Luke Humphries. 'Pikachu' is now in the top 32 of the world rankings and is currently the second German since he outlasted Gabriel Clemens. Pietreczko is not immediately known for his tremendously high scoring ability, but that will be necessary to keep pace with Dobey.

Next up is Gerwyn Price, who takes on Daryl Gurney in his opening match. Price will be there for the 11th consecutive time at the World Matchplay. In 2022, he reached the final at the Winter Gardens, which he lost to Michael van Gerwen. But Price and the World Matchplay is actually not a great combination, no less than four times he went down immediately in the opening round, three times the second round was his finish. Still, Price is seen as one of the top favorites for the final victory this year. The 40-year-old Welshman has already won three Players Championship titles this year and recently triumphed at the Baltic Sea Darts Open. After a shaky 2024, "The iceman" is back in full force and once again radiating fun and energy on stage. At the World Cup of Darts, he reached the final alongside Jonny Clayton, but lost against Northern Ireland. Price won the World Series of Darts Finals in 2022, his last major title, and is thus aiming for another success.

In the first round Price has to get past Gurney, recently his tormentor (together with Josh Rock) in the final of the World Cup of Darts. Like Price, Gurney is experienced and has won two majors. However, his last success at a major dates back to 2018 at the Players Championship Finals. 'Superchin' is still neatly in the top 32 of the world rankings, but his best years seem to be a while behind him. Or can the 39-year-old Northern Irishman pull off a surprise against Price?

The third match of the evening is also the clash everyone is most looking forward to. With Michael van Gerwen and Raymond van Barneveld, two living legends of the world of darts will face each other. Both Dutchmen are multiple world champions and also won multiple majors. Van Gerwen is still the world number three, but his last major title dates back to 2023. The 36-year-old Dutchman recently squeezed out a month due to personal problems, but has since returned to the Pro Tour. However, his results since then have not been particularly impressive, so it remains to be seen which Van Gerwen we get to see this week in Blackpool. 'Mighty Mike' has already won the World Matchplay three times.

On his way to a fourth trophy, he has to get past Van Barneveld in the first round. 'Barney' managed to qualify in the nick of time for this edition of the World Matchplay and will be there for the fifteenth time. His best performance came in 2010, when he lost in the final to the inevitable Phil Taylor. Van Barneveld's best years are behind him, but he will be super motivated for a duel with his compatriot Van Gerwen. Moreover, considering Van Gerwen is not in his best form, Van Barneveld will certainly smell his chances.

The evening will wind down with the duel between Ross Smith and Josh Rock. For Smith, it will be his fourth appearance at the World Matchplay. His best performance was in 2024 when he lost 16-10 to James Wade in the quarter-finals. 'Smudger,' winner of the European Championship in 2022, recently expressed his desire to win a second major soon. His form is already quite good, having already won a Players Championship this year.

Smith, however, has not exactly hit the draw jackpot. Indeed, Rock comes to the World Matchplay brimming with confidence after winning the World Cup of Darts last month alongside Daryl Gurney. The 24-year-old Northern Irishman, who has been hailed as a top talent for several years, has already won a Players Championship this year and is ranked in the top 16 of the world rankings. Both Smith and Rock are known for their high scoring abilities, so we could be in for a match with a lot of 180s and high finishes;