James Hubbard’s Betting Tips for the UK Open (Day 2) Evening Session

• Michael Smith to Win: 10/11 at Ladbrokes

Michael Smith has looked much better in Minehead and will take a lot of confidence from his 5th round victory over Madars Razma. Bully Boy was back to his best in patches during that match and won 10-7 hitting nine 180s and a 164 finish to win. If the Englishman continues to flow like that then he'll take some stopping.

Reigning UK Open Champion Dimitri Van den Bergh came through 10-9 against Chris Dobey in the 5th round but in truth it wasn't the best standard. Dobey could have run away with it early if he didn't miss doubles but the Belgian capitalized well and finished the match with a 12 dart leg in the decider.

I'm still not convinced about Dimitri's form, and if Michael Smith scores like he did against Razma I can see him running away with this. It's a big match for Bully Boy and I think he'll be out to prove his doubters wrong and it wouldn't surprise me to see a vintage Michael Smith performance tonight.

• Gian van Veen over 5.5 180s: 11/10 at Bet365
• Gian van Veen Most 180s & Win the Match: 9/4 at Bet365

Damon Heta has battled well in this tournament with wins against Kim Huybrechts and Connor Scutt. He hasn't been in the best of form lately and perhaps got away with it a tad after both his opponents were under par. Heta averaged 91.31 and 93.24 in his two wins, which is certainly not bad but he will need a lot more than that tonight to trouble this talented Dutchman.

Gian van Veen is another player who has seemingly gone under the radar on his way to the last 16. He's navigated his way past Nick Kenny and Stephen Burton, averaging 97.12 and 97.26. He has such a high ceiling in his performance levels and proved that at the Grand Slam last year when he beat Stephen Bunting with a 114.71 average.

Gian van Veen has hit 404 180s over the last 12 months at an average of 0.27 per leg. I expect this to be a close match, so there'll be plenty of opportunities for maximums, and with Heta only hitting five 180s in 29 legs so far in this tournament, I think there is plenty of value in my picks. The Dutchman looks the better player right now and I think he comes through this tie and books a place in his first UK Open quarter-final.

• Josh Rock to Win: 11/8 at Betway

Josh Rock has certainly started to find his form this season and came through an epic match against Ross Smith in the 5th round. Rocky won 10-9 with a 104.82 average in a contest that saw 19 180s hit between them. The Northern Irishman has now set a personal best run at a UK Open with his previous best being a run to the 5th round last year. It feels like a big season for him and a win here would push him into the world's top 16.

Rob Cross came through a fantastic match with Danny Noppert 10-9, defying 11 maximums from the Dutchman. He averaged 97.57 and held himself well to hold throw and win the decider after being 5-2 up earlier in the match. Cross has had back to back quarter finals at the UK Open and will be looking to make it three in a row with a win here.

Rock has been the better player in this tournament and even though he's the outsider I think he stands a very good chance to progress to the quarter-final. As I said previously, I think this is a big season for him, but the only worry I have is this match is on the main stage. Cross is clearly more experienced on TV but if Rock settles quickly, I think he wins this match.

• William O'Connor to Win: 8/5 at Coral

William O'Connor has quietly gone under the radar with some fantastic performances to reach this stage for the third time in his career. He's averaged 98.06, 98.06 and 100.67 in wins against Tom Sykes, Scott Williams and Mensur Suljovic. He's had a very dry spell over the last 18 months but looks back to his best and ready to have another run at the UK Open after reaching the semi-final here in 2022.

Nathan Aspinall has looked much better over the last few weeks and he's starting to get some results. The Asp has taken advantage of quite a soft draw with wins over Martin Lukeman and Jurjen van der Velde with a 95.10 and a 91.73 average. On paper he has another decent draw here but I think he's going to find it tough now O'Connor has seemingly refound his form.

I'm not surprised to see Aspinall as the favourite but I'm a little surprised at O'Connor's price. The Irishman has arguably been one of the players of the tournament and he's no stranger to this stage of the UK Open. If William O'Connor plays like he has done in his previous three matches, I think he gets the win and at this price it's extremely hard to ignore.