The second round of the 2025 Betfred World Matchplay starts this evening on Day 4 at the Winter Gardens.
Gian van Veen produced the shock of the tournament so far when he dumped out World Number 1 and defending champion, Luke Humphries, in the first round. Eight 180s and a 98.45 average were enough to dispatch Cool Hand 10-8.
I said it was the shock of the tournament, and clearly it's a surprise result, but those who have watched Gian van Veen over the last 18 months certainly won't be surprised he was able to produce a performance like that. These performances are becoming a regular thing, and it will be no surprise to see him go on a deep run in Blackpool.
Danny Noppert didn't have to be on his A game in round 1, as he easily overcame an out-of-sorts Cameron Menzies 10-2. Noppy was solid though, producing 5 maximums and a 96.44 average. He'll need to step it up tonight, though, if he's to live with this power scoring young Dutchman.
I'm surprised to see the odds for Van Veen to hit the most 180s in this match, as he is one of the biggest maximum hitters in the sport, and I think this could be the biggest steal on value for the week.
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Wessel Nijman is another young Dutchman who continues to impress. He produced a fabulous 101.72 average and eight 180s en route to a 10-6 victory over the in-form Nathan Aspinall. It was a very impressive performance from the 25-year-old, especially as it was on debut.
James Wade recorded his highest ever World Matchplay average (104.44) during his 10-3 rout of Joe Cullen. Wade reached the semi-final here 12 months ago, and if he remains in this kind of mood, he can have another deep run in 2025 at the Winter Gardens.
This match will be tight, but I think Wade's experience will shine through here, and I'm surprised to see him as the slight underdog by the bookies' pricing, which I think is wrong.
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Stephen Bunting showed plenty of grit to grind out a 10-8 victory over Ryan Joyce. The Bullet averaged 98.00 and 10 maximums to book his place in the second round. He'll take a lot of confidence from that result as Joyce is a potential banana skin for anybody on tour.
Gary Anderson put on a finishing clinic during his 10-5 victory over Luke Woodhouse, hitting 10/15 on the doubles (66.67%). Scores of twelve 140+ and 34 100+ show he is still scoring well, but only two 180s in the match will be worrying.
This looks to be a close match, and one of those based on form that looks like a coin flip. So I'm happy to stay away from the result here and look at the 180 markets. Based on their first-round games, it seems like a fantastic price for Bunting to outscore Anderson on the maximums, so that seems the most obvious route here.
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Jonny Clayton carried on his fantastic form during his 10-7 first-round victory over German number 1, Martin Schindler. The Ferrett continues to impress and looks a real danger to go deep in this tournament.
Mike de Decker got the job done 10-7 against Dave Chisnall in the first round, but it didn't look overly convincing. Chizzy has been struggling of late, and the Belgian got away with it with some good finishing (10/18, 56%)
Clayton averaged 99.60 and hit eight 180s in his first round victory, and if he repeats that again tonight, he should breeze through this match comfortably.
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4 Fold: 8.41/1
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Max. Amount | £60 |
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Expiration | 28 days |
James is a former professional dart player who enjoys writing about darts, golf and football. In 2012, he was crowned the PDC World Youth Champion and these days, he puts his expertise to use with betting tips for BettingLounge readers.