The group stages of the Grand Slam of Darts are behind us and there is a real sense that the tournament is set to properly begin on Wednesday evening when the knockout part of the event gets underway in Wolverhampton.
Gone are the best-of-nine lotteries and now we are up to a race-to-10 which means players can settle into a groove a little more and as such we should see what has already been a fantastic quality go up a further notch.
Stephen Bunting vs Dimitri Van den Bergh
The knockout stages begins with the Group G winner Stephen Bunting taking on the Group H runner-up Dimitri Van den Bergh in what should be an entertaining contest with Bunting back in good touch and the Belgian loving the big stage.
Van den Bergh is the favourite in this match but I’m not so sure he will come through it. I fancy Bunting will keep up with him and then take advantage of any nerves later in the match but the odds are probably about right and I’m on Bunting outright so I can sit back here and hope he comes through rather than bet on him to do so.
Gerwyn Price vs Josh Payne
The second match of the night sees the Group F winner Gerwyn Price playing the surprising runner-up of Group E in Josh Payne in what could be something of an interesting battle for a spot in the quarter finals.
These two have met five times and it is actually Payne who has won all five. Admittedly they have all been on the floor but he can take no finer confidence heading into the match than that. We saw the frailties of Price that always comes to the fore as a favourite in the previous match when he missed a succession of doubles under pressure to beat Simon Whitlock and as a result Payne definitely tempts me here. That said it is probably too long a format for him to win and the handicap is a little tight so I’ll sit this out too.
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Rob Cross vs Mensur Suljovic
The third match of the night sees the world champion Rob Cross looking to make it into the quarter finals when he takes on a Mensur Suljovic who hasn’t been firing on all cylinders this week and who was fortunate to come through his group.
These two men have met five times in 2018 and they have all been on the stage of some kind. Suljovic has won four of the five with his sole defeat coming in the Premier League which was probably all a bit too much for him by the time they met in that competition. Nevertheless this is more in keeping with his liking and I fancy Suljovic could be tough to beat here.
Cross has performed better in this tournament but he hasn’t completely convinced me. With more time to get into the match and to get his form going I fancy we’ll see a much better Suljovic than in recent weeks and he can come through here at odds against.
Peter Wright vs Simon Whitlock
The last of the second round matches on Wednesday evening is probably the best of them on paper as Peter Wright looks to make it into another Grand Slam quarter final when he faces Simon Whitlock who looked very good last time out.
Wright has looked much better than we have seen from him in the last couple of TV tournaments this week and you would think the longer format will bring the best out of him. Whitlock was insanely good on Monday night and should be full of confidence heading into this one so we should be set up for a blockbuster match.
I can never truly back Whitlock with any confidence these days though. He’s too up and down on the finishing for my liking but he does score well and I think there will be enough legs in this match for him to register five 180s whether he wins the match or loses it.
Tips
WON – Back M.Suljovic to beat R.Cross for a 4/10 stake at 2.20 with Unibet
Back him here:
Back S.Whitlock – Over 4.5 180s for a 4/10 stake at 2.20 with William Hill
Back him here:
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