The World Matchplay has reached the semi-final stage and we are all set for a great night of darts at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool on Saturday as four of the best in the game battle it out for a place in Sunday’s final.
The early stages of the tournament was a graveyard for the favourites this week but four of the more accomplished players on the PDC circuit have negotiated their way through to the latter stages to set up two great semis.
Taylor vs Wade
Two former champions meet in the first semi-final as Phil Taylor takes on James Wade. Neither man has been really tested so far in the tournament but you get the feeling both will be put under pressure in this match.
Phil Taylor has only dropped 16 legs in this tournament so far but I wouldn’t say we’ve seen him at his very best yet. His average is going up game by game and I think the reason for that is his finishing has been getting better and better. He has actually scored well for most of the tournament but his doubling let him down in the early stages.
James Wade has been in good form this week too. He averaged over 103 in the first round, and he needed to, and he was over the 100 mark again in the quarter final. He has also been scoring well. He may not have the number of 180s that some have in the tournament but his 140 count is very high and we know when he gets down to mid-range finishes and below there aren’t many more reliable.
These two will know each other well. They have met on 58 previous occasions and actually Wade’s eight wins is one of the better records against Taylor. They have met in the final of this tournament on four previous occasions and also a semi-final so they are well accustomed to playing each other here. Wade struggled to stay close early on but he’s been within three and five in their last two here and has a long distance win over Taylor in The Masters since then.
I don’t think Wade will fear Taylor which some do. He might not be good enough over this distance but he won’t fade away or bottle it. Wade is good enough on his own throw to be hard to break too many times and there will be the odd leg against the throw where he finds a 12 darter so I fancy him to keep this close. I don’t see Wade walking away with it so rather than taking Wade on the +4.5 cap I’ll take the slight extra risk and play over 28.5 legs at the bigger price.
Van Gerwen vs Wright
The second semi-final is a repeat of the 2014 World Championship final as Michael van Gerwen takes on Peter Wright. I think it is right to say these two have been the best players in this tournament so far and if they show the form of the earlier rounds we are set for a classic match.
Van Gerwen was made to battle in the quarter final by Ian White but the Green Machine showed a lot of class when the pressure was really on and that will stand him in good stead this weekend. We know van Gerwen will score but how he finishes under pressure will define how well he does here.
Peter Wright has shown all of his quality in this tournament. He was brilliant in the first two rounds and while his average was nothing to write home about against Price in the quarter final compared to the other three semi-finalists he had turned that match into a procession from an early stage and you get the feeling there was more in him had he needed it.
These two have met plenty of times and we know that Wright gets on van Gerwen’s nerves but he showed in Japan recently that he can beat him in a high scoring match. If he is to beat him here he will have to finish well but the way he’s been scoring this week he will certainly keep van Gerwen honest.
I think it is asking a lot for van Gerwen to win this by six legs the way Wright is scoring and finishing and as long as Wright doesn’t have a complete mare on the doubles I expect there to be at least 28 legs in this match.
Back P.Taylor vs J.Wade – Over 28.5 legs for a 4/10 stake at 2.00 with Skybet
Back M.van Gerwen vs P.Wright – Over 27.5 legs for a 4/10 stake at 1.91 with BetVictor
