We will begin the second round of the World Matchplay on Tuesday night. The format is going up. Eleven legs will now have to be won to reach the next round.
However, this is subject to a difference of at least two legs at that time. If the score is 10-10 after twenty legs, then a tie-break will be started. If the score is still tied after six additional legs, a sudden-death leg will be played.
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The first game of the evening is between two players who both comfortably made it through their first round. Price proved too strong for Daryl Gurney 10-4, while Smith won 10-4 over Josh Rock.
The Welshman and the Englishman face each other on Tuesday night for the ninth time in their careers. The standings are currently balanced, as both have won four times over the other. The momentum does lie with Price, who has won the last two clashes.
Smith recorded his first ever victory at the World Matchplay with his victory over Rock. So naturally, he can also make it to the quarterfinals for the first time. Price previously reached the last eight in 2015, 2021 and 2022. In 2022, Price even managed to reach the final.
The only remaining unseeded player at the top of the playing schedule is James Wade. 'The Machine' managed to floor Danny Noppert (10-5) in the first round. Defending champion Nathan Aspinall recorded a hard-fought victory over Luke Woodhouse (10-8).
It will have to wait and see if Aspinall has recovered from that wear and tear yet, as the Englishman is struggling with a severe arm injury and will disappear from the circuit for two to three months after this tournament.
In the head-to-head, it is Aspinall who holds an 11-9 lead. However, the last two duels were won by Wade. In 2022, the two Englishmen also met in the second round of the World Matchplay. Then the win went 11-9 to Aspinall.
The darter from Stockport can reach the quarter-finals of the World Matchplay for the fourth year in a row. Wade has already advanced to the last eight 11 times, although the last time dates back to 2019.
Title favorite Luke Humphries continues his tournament against Stephen Bunting, after the world number one easily outsmarted Ricardo Pietreczko 10-4 in the opening round thanks to an average of 108.76. Bunting got Ryan Joyce to his knees after extension 12-10.
Humphries and Bunting have faced each other thirteen times in the past at a PDC tournament. Eight times the win went to 'Cool Hand Luke' and five times 'The Bullet' drew the longest. When Bunting won the Masters in February, he managed to beat Humphries 10-7 in the last sixteen.
Bunting made it to the quarterfinals in his previous nine appearances at Blackpool only in 2019. Humphries' best result at the World Matchplay is a semifinal place in 2023. For him, this edition is his fourth participation in Blackpool.
The evening will conclude with a meeting between Jonny Clayton and Dimitri van den Bergh, the world numbers eight and nine. Clayton was responsible for the elimination of Raymond van Barneveld (10-7) in the first round. Van den Bergh came out on top against Martin Schindler (10-6) and also hit a nine darter in that match.
The Welshman and the Belgian have already fought eighteen duels between them. Eight times Clayton emerged victorious, and ten times Van den Bergh was the strongest. This year they also faced each other in the last sixteen at the UK Open. Van den Bergh won 10-7 and would eventually take the title at that tournament as well.
Clayton can reach the last eight in Blackpool for the second time in his career after his final place finish last year. Van den Bergh managed to survive the second shuffle three times before at the World Matchplay.
Tuesday, July 16 (from 7 p.m.)
Second round
Gerwyn Price v Ross Smith
Nathan Aspinall v James Wade
Luke Humphries v Stephen Bunting
Jonny Clayton v Dimitri Van den Bergh