Stephen Bunting v Mensur Suljovic
A former Lakeside World Champion and Premier League player in Stephen Bunting has suffered a slump in recent times but comes into the this tournament after another quiet spell.
He is ranked 14th in the PDC Order of Merit but for any chance of a return to the Premier League fold he’ll need to improve his game and become a more consistent players. Since his switch from the BDO you could say he is yet to cut it with the ‘big boys.’
The Scouser won a Players Championship event back in March when it looked like he’d returned to some form after beating van Gerwen and Peter Wright along the way but he has failed to kick on from that success.
This is his third World Matchplay and he was a first round casualty last year against Ian White but in 2014 he reached the Last 16 having beaten Wright in the first round before crashing out against Gary Anderson. To be fair to him he hasn’t had an easy draw, if there is such a thing.
Mensur Suljovic is a player that you can’t really say a bad word about. He always seems a likeable character and despite not having the ability of the van Gerwen’s, Taylor’s and Anderson’s it doesn’t stop him from performing.
‘The Gentle’ has reached multiple quarter finals and semi finals this year without getting his hands on any silverware. He’s the sort of player that can go deep into a tournament by proving a nuisance to the seeds without having the game to win it.
Last year was his best effort in this major having reached the quarter final where beaten by James Wade – the eventual runner up. He beat Terry Jenkins in his first match and followed it up by shocking Gary Anderson.
This is a match where I can see Bunting having the higher average without winning. Suljovic is unconventional, especially on his checkouts, but it works for him and is something that will be pivotal in this match. It’s close to a pick’em in most outright markets.
Advice
Over 16.5 Legs (5/6)
Kim Huybrechts v Gerwyn Price
Belgian Kim Huybrechts is another player that has struggled of late and it’s fair to say things don’t get much easier for him coming up against a rising Gerwyn Price.
Kim was the main reason Belgium have reached the semi finals at the World Cup of Darts for two years running however bar that one off tournament, that features doubles, he hasn’t had too much to sing about.
Back to back semi finals in the Players Championship on consecutive days at the start of the month must give him some encouragement but the pressure is on him to win given his 13th place ranking.
Five visits to Blackpool and he’s never got into the second round. That must play on his mind coming into this and the fact he is odds on makes it enough to be able to oppose him.
Former rugby player Price has caught the eye in a number of ways, not just because of his untypical build associated with darts players.
The 31 year old has improved a lot from his experiences on the floor. He won a Players Championship in Coventry in May beating Wright in the final. He has found a better rhythm and isn’t one short on confidence.
He can rock up here knowing the pressure is on Huybrechts, and for me the Belgian doesn’t handle it all to well, so that could play into Price’s hands. On his Matchplay debut last year he reached the quarter final where he was beaten by Wright, who seems to be a player he can’t beat.
To get to that stage he defeated Michael Smith and Adrian Lewis, which shows he has the game to beat some of the better players. This format will suit him and for me he wins the match.
Advice:
Gerwyn Price to Win (6/4)
Terry Jenkins v Justin Pipe
I don’t want to sound to disparaging but this is arguably the worst match of this opening round on paper. In the politest way possible I’d be putting these in the has been bracket, especially Pipe who in recent times has struggled for any sort of consistency and if he was a horse you’d say he was gone at the game.
Pipe reached the Dutch Darts Masters final back in 2015 but of late that’s his best piece of form coming into this tournament. He is slow at the best of times but watching him in the UK Open was slightly painful in the match he was defeated by Kim Huybrechts.
You have to go to 2012 and 2013 to find him going on a run to the quarter finals but ‘The Force’ will need to pull off some sort of voodoo or witchcraft to be a force in this year’s competition.
One thing in his favour is the head to head record, which reads as seven wins in their 12 meetings.
Terry Jenkins is favourite to progress and he has the calibre in this competition to suggest that it is priced correctly. He reached the final in both 2007 and 2009 only to be defeated by Phil Taylor. In 2012 he got through to the semi final and had the chances to beat James Wade however missed crucial darts before getting knocked out.
They were the years when he was at his prime and that saw him reach nine major televised finals in total however he failed to win any of them, which is a shame because he is another very likeable player. Also a few years ago you couldn’t have begrudged it because at them times he was able to mix it but the game has climbed another couple of rungs up the ladder but he has failed to go with them.
‘Bully’ has had a few good runs deep into tournaments. Wins over Adrian Lewis and Ian White saw him through to a UK Open qualifying quarter final that came a day after he had reached the semi final.
Jenkins retains the game where you can question if Pipe does. The former is definitely the right favourite, as we have seen him down the years have his best days on the Winter Gardens stage. It would be nice to see Jenkins have another run this time around but if he was to progress he’d set up a likely match against Gary Anderson.
Advice:
Double up: Jenkins to Win & Over 16.5 Legs (3.06/1 – SkyBet)
Ian White v Daryl Gurney
Ian White is another one of these middle of the road players – consistent but nothing flashy. His throwing action is solid and it has helped him to success in a couple of floor events this year, including one earlier this month.
‘Diamond White’ made his Matchplay debut in 2012 and has featured since then. He’s never been defeated in his opening match and he’s beaten some useful PDC players in their own right. Last year he was knocked out in the quarter finals, beaten by MvG. On his way to that round he defeated Stephen Bunting and Simon Whitlock.
In his last two first round matches the man from Stoke-on-Trent has averaged over 100 meaning Gurney will have to pull something special out of the bag to stop him.
This is Gurney’s Matchplay debut and the 30 year old is steadily climbing the rankings.
‘Superchin’ has had some good results in TV tournaments and three of his last four exits have been against the player who has gone on to win the tournament, so you could say he has been a bit luckless with the draw.
The Northern Irishman reached the Dutch Darts Master final, which was his first ranking final. Along the way he beat Adrian Lewis, Peter Wright and Mensur Suljovic but he was unable to stop van Gerwen.
There has been five previous meetings between this pair and White has won all five. Gurney has got the quality and the game to beat him, especially as the longer format may suit, but with White having the pedigree and the know how in TV tournaments he looks the safe bet.
In his first round match last year White hit eight maximums and took out a 127. The year before he checked out a 160 and hit four 180s, therefore the 180s market could prove a bit more fruitful here considering Gurney can score freely too.
Advice:
Over 9.5 180s (4/5)
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