The quarter final line up in the World Matchplay will be completed on Wednesday evening when the final four matches in the second round are played out on what should be an entertaining session of play at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool.
Tuesday night was a wonderful night of darts with some great matches on show and we are hoping for more of the same on Wednesday on a night where the world champion Rob Cross is the star of the show.
Simon Whitlock vs James Wade
The opening match of the night sees two men who are no strangers to facing each other meet when Simon Whitlock takes on James Wade in a contest between two men who will be fancying their chances of going the distance from here on in.
Whitlock actually edges their previous meetings 21-17 but it is Wade who has won their two battles this year so this one could legitimately go either way. I think Wade is a worthy favourite though because of the form he has been in recently but I’m already on him outright which is enough interest for me on him winning the match.
I do like Whitlock to hit the most 180s here however. Wade is the second worst 180 hitter in the field on statistics in 2018 and we saw some of that in the first round where he could only muster a couple of maximums. Whitlock is much more accustomed in the 180 hitting and should hit the most here.
Mensur Suljovic vs Ian White
The second match of the evening could just be the closest one of the night as the Champions League winner Mensur Suljovic takes on an Ian White who is a regular winner on the floor but who is still looking for that major stage breakthrough.
Suljovic leads the previous meetings between these two 5-3 and has won their last three battles but generally matches between the two are quite tight and I’m not expecting this one to be much different. I’m already on White to win via my quarter bet on him so I’ll leave the match outcome alone but both these men are playing well and four of their eight meetings have gone to a deciding leg or set. That makes me believe the even money on there being more than 18.5 legs in this one looks good.
The other thing that looks good to me is for White to hit the most 180s. He hit eight of them in the first round in what was a silky performance throw wise. Suljovic will never be smooth with his throw and while he hits more 180s now than he once used to he shouldn’t keep up with White in that department very often. You can get a shade over 7/4 if you double White with Whitlock in the most 180s market and that looks good to me.
Rob Cross vs Darren Webster
The world champion Rob Cross is back on the Blackpool stage in the third match of the evening on Wednesday when he takes on the tough little cookie that is Darren Webster for a place in the quarter finals of the tournament.
You would think Cross would be too good here. He had the highest average in the first round and should get better as he goes into the tournament and the format gets longer but Webster is a tricky bloke to shake off and I wouldn’t be entirely surprised if he causes a few scares for Cross before this one is done. That said Cross is good enough to blow Webster away so there is no sure way in to tempt me into betting on this one.
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Peter Wright vs Kim Huybrechts
The final match of the second round of the tournament sees the highest seed left in the competition in action when Peter Wright faces a Kim Huybrechts who must be wondering what Blackpool looks like on the Wednesday as he has been home by now in each of the other years he has played here.
As it happens, the Belgian will fancy his chances in this match because he was much better than Wright on Monday evening and Wright hasn’t really been pulling up trees by his standards in 2018 even if he has produced better finishes in the last 2-3 months. Wright holds a 16-10 lead over Huybrechts but the Scot has lost three of the last five meetings.
Most matches between these two are quite close which makes me think over 18.5 legs has mileage but I prefer Huybrechts to hit the most 180s here. All the chopping and changing Wright does with his darts definitely affects his grouping and as such he only hit two 180s against Klaasen. Whether he is playing well or not Huybrechts always groups his darts well so when he finds the top wire of the 60 two more usually follow it. He hit eight 180s in seeing off Hendo in the first round and even a couple less here should get the most 180s job done.
Tips
WON – Back M.Suljovic vs I.White – Over 18.5 legs for a 4/10 stake at 2.00 with Betfair
Back it here:
Back S.Whitlock x I.White Most 180s double for a 3/10 stake at 2.79 with Skybet
Back it here:
WON – Back K.Huybrechts Most 180s vs P.Wright for a 4/10 stake at 2.30 with Boylesports
Back him here:
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