The second round of the Grand Slam of Darts finishes on Thursday evening and the four matches on show at the Wolverhampton Civic Hall all look like crackers so this should be some night of darts to take into the latter stages of the weekend.
We have two world champions on show, one of the best the PDC has had to offer, three BDO players looking to make a major breakthrough and two of the better young players in the world so it is nicely poised for a high quality night.
Jamie Hughes vs Chris Dobey
One of the more interesting matches on the night is first up as Jamie Hughes takes on Chris Dobey. Hughes did remarkably well to come out on top of the ‘Group of Death’ while Dobey outgunned Adrian Lewis and Scott Mitchell to qualify from his group so both lads are playing well.
I look at the pair of them and I see them as remarkably similar. They both have excellent throws and both have shown their class under pressure this week as well as their scoring power so this one is going to be decided by the narrower margins and I think that will be reflected on the scoreline. I don’t see this being won any easier than 10-7 either way so over 16.5 legs looks the bet here.
Benito van der Pas vs James Wade
James Wade was expected to win his group but a defeat to Dave Chisnall in his final match proved damaging to those hopes so he has to settle for second and a clash with a Benito van de Pas who has beaten him three times in their last four outings.
Consistency is something van de Pas needs to find to really climb into the very upper echelons on the game but there is clearly something about playing Wade that brings out the best in him and with two of those recent wins being on TV he will be confident going into this match.
I have this a little tighter than the odds suggest so off the back of a good week betting wise so far I’m going to allow myself a value punt on the Dutchman coming through this one.
Gary Anderson vs Danny Noppert
Gary Anderson has looked very good in this tournament so far while Danny Noppert has surprised many judges with the quality of his play. The interesting thing here will be whether Noppert can keep up his form over this much longer distance. If he can he is entitled to be dangerous but it is a big question.
Anderson is a class act and it is no slight on Noppert in the slightest to suggest that the Scot should be coming through here with a little bit in hand but little seems to get to Noppert so it has the feeling of a match to watch and observe rather than bet on.
Raymond Barneveld vs Glen Durrant
Undoubtedly the match of the night is the final one with all eyes on Raymond Barneveld. He has been fantastic in the tournament so far but we’ve seen him cruise through a group before and then struggle over the longer distance. Glen Durrant was equally impressive in the group and he might well relish both the size of the task here and the extended length of the format.
I think this will be a high quality match and one which contains plenty of 180s. Both are proficient in the 60 bed with Barneveld having 12 180s to his name this week but Durrant having hit at least two in each of his three matches. The longer format allows for better darts so I’m with the 180s here.
Tips
WON – Back J.Hughes vs C.Dobey – Over 16.5 legs for a 4/10 stake at 1.83 with Skybet
Back it here:
Back B.van de Pas to beat J.Wade for a 3/10 stake at 3.00 with Boylesports
Back him here:
WON – Back R.Barneveld vs G.Durrant – Over 9.5 180s for a 4/10 stake at 2.10 with Coral
Back it here:
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