The first round of the PDC World Darts Championship draws to a close on Thursday evening when the final four matches of the opening part of the draw gets played out inside the Alexandra Palace in London.
We’ve seen most of the big names on show so far with some making it through and some not and on Thursday we see one of the biggest stars in the modern game as the world number two Peter Wright gets his quest for a first world title underway.
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Cristo Reyes vs Antonio Alcinas
30 Age 38
Last 16 PDCWC Best Last 64
Last 32 Last Year DNQ
2 Head to Head 0
The evening begins with an all-Spanish clash which in truth neither of these men will have wanted. Cristo Reyes and Antonio Alcinas were World Cup teammates earlier in the year but now they will be out to beat each other up especially with Kevin Munch rather than Adrian Lewis waiting in the next round.
Reyes gave Michael van Gerwen a right good game here last year but the second half of the year has seen his form really dip. You would expect him to be up for this and play to a decent level and if he does he should win but Alcinas is here for the first time in six years and he won’t want to quickly. In fact in terms of tour form he is probably the better player coming in.
I think this match will last longer than it is billed for and given that they both know where the 60 is and don’t switch too often I suspect the 6.5 180s line is a touch on the low side. This could easily go four or five sets in which case I expect this line to be covered.
Kim Huybrechts vs James Richardson
32 Age 43
QF PDCWC Best Last 32
Last 16 Last Year DNQ
5 Head to Head 0
The award for the interesting match of the night prior to the action beginning goes to this one where most logic would suggest Kim Huybrechts will win this easily but he doesn’t always relish being a huge favourite and James Richardson has previous on this stage.
I think this match is in the hands of Huybrechts. If he plays well and finishes to a decent standard he should have more than enough to get the job done but if he doesn’t this could become an awkward night. Rather than guess the Belgian’s finishing level I’ll sit and watch and see how this plays out.
Darren Webster vs Devon Petersen
49 Age 31
QF PDCWC Best Last 16
Last 16 Last Year Last 64
2 Head to Head 1
The penultimate match of the evening sees Darren Webster looking to pick up another first round win when he takes on the popular South African player Devon Petersen for the right to face Simon Whitlock in the next round.
Webster is one of the better players in the world these days and is competitive whenever he takes to the stage. Very rarely does he put up a poor performance and he never gets embroiled in anything. He’ll just play his game and often does it very well.
Petersen is a popular lad and 2-3 years ago he was a real good player but he has regressed significantly recently and it is hard to see him being competitive here unless he is allowed to be. He’ll have the odd decent leg but the leg on leg consistency of the Norfolk man should see him cruise through.
Peter Wright vs Diogo Portela
47 Age 29
Runner Up PDCWC Best Debut
SF Last Year N/A
0 Head to Head 0
The final match of the first round sees the number two seed Peter Wright begin his quest for a first world title when he takes on arguably the best story in the competition in Brazilian player Diogo Portela.
We saw Portela in the World Cup where his passion lit up the event and it is good to see him here but if we are being realistic then his appearance is going to be a fleeting one. Wright was a fitness doubt ahead of the tournament but he got lucky with the schedule and appears to have recovered sufficiently enough to play.
All eyes will be on Wright to see how good he is after his health scare but he won’t need to be 100% here. If he can average in the mid-90s that will be enough against a player who will be out of his depth. I don’t see the Brazilian winning four legs here so under 13.5 legs looks the obvious play.
Tips
Back C.Reyes vs A.Alcinas – Over 6.5 180s for a 4/10 stake at 1.83 with Betfair
Back it here:
Back D.Webster vs D.Petersen – Under 16.5 legs for a 5/10 stake at 1.73 with Betfred
Back P.Wright vs D.Portela – Under 13.5 legs for a 4/10 stake at 1.83 with Betfred
Back them here:
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