World Matchplay Darts 2023 – The Draw and Our Top Tips
World Champions Gerwyn Price, Rob Cross, and Gary Anderson will all be in action on a star-studded opening night of the 2023 Betfred World Matchplay. The £800,000 tournament begins Saturday evening at Blackpool’s iconic Winter Gardens. The first game on a mouth-watering card is a meeting between 2018 quarter-finalist Joe Cullen – the 2022 Masters champion – and Belgian debutant Mike De Decker.
Gerwyn Price is 9/2 to win his first World Matchplay title. A finalist in 2022, the Welshman is predicted to go deep in this year’s tournament. ©Taylor Lanning/PDC
There are two sessions on Sunday. The first is headlined by the 2007 champion, James Wade, who plays Premier League star Chris Dobey. Beforehand, World Youth Champion Josh Rock makes his Matchplay debut against Damon Heta. The 22-year-old from Northern Ireland is the fifth favourite in Betfred’s outright competition betting list.
During the evening session, reigning champion Michael van Gerwen will begin the defence of his title against Brendan Dolan. 2023 World Champion Michael Smith – the top seed as world number one – meets sprightly veteran Steve Beaton.
The first round concludes on Monday evening when 2021 champion Peter Wright takes on Andrew Gilding. Dutch legend Raymond van Barneveld makes his first Blackpool appearance in five years when playing Ryan Searle. 2020 Matchplay winner Dimitri Van den Bergh is also in action on the night.
World Matchplay: What You Need to Know
The second round of the 2023 Betfred World Matchplay will take place across Tuesday and Wednesday evening sessions. The quarterfinals are scheduled for Thursday, July 20, and Friday, July 21. Saturday, July 22 will see the semi-finals take place. The final will be contested on Sunday, July 23. On the line is a £200,000 winner’s prize and the Phil Taylor Trophy.
Order of Play
First Round: Saturday July 15, 7pm
Joe Cullen v Mike De Decker
Rob Cross v Daryl Gurney
Gerwyn Price v Stephen Bunting
Dave Chisnall v Gary Anderson
First Round: Sunday July 16, 1pm
Danny Noppert v Martin Schindler
Dirk van Duijvenbode v Kim Huybrechts
Damon Heta v Josh Rock
James Wade v Chris Dobey
First Round: Sunday July 16, 7.30pm
Nathan Aspinall v Krzysztof Ratajski
Luke Humphries v Jose de Sousa
Michael van Gerwen v Brendan Dolan
Michael Smith v Steve Beaton
First Round: Monday July 17, 7.00pm
Dimitri Van den Bergh v Ross Smith
Ryan Searle v Raymond van Barneveld
Peter Wright v Andrew Gilding
Jonny Clayton v Gabriel Clemens
Second Round:
Tuesday July 18, 7.00pm
Wednesday July 19, 7.00pm
Quarterfinals:
Thursday July 20, 7.00pm (two matches)
Friday July 21, 7.00pm (two matches)
Semi-Finals:
Saturday July 22, 8.00pm
Final:
Sunday July 23, 8.00pm
All matches in the Betfred World Matchplay will be broadcast live on Sky Sports in the UK and Ireland. Additionally, they will be shown worldwide via the PDC’s broadcast partners, including DAZN and Viaplay. The top UK bookmakers will offer in-play betting markets accompanied by live-score updates.
What Are the Best World Matchplay Bets?
Luke Humphries is a player in form. At the start of the month, he won the Interwetten European Darts Matchplay in Germany, producing impressive averages before collecting the £30,000 prize. On Monday, he won a PDC Pro Tour Players Championship event in Leicester. He registered a career first nine-dart finish in the process.
A new father, world-ranked six, and the winner of 18 of his last 21 games, the 2019 World Youth champion must be oozing confidence. 14/1 with the best darts betting sites, ‘Cool Hand Luke’ is the pick from the bottom half of the draw.
Gerwyn Price is the obvious selection from the top section of the draw. The Welshman was a finalist in this tournament last year and has maintained a high level of form since. The 2021 World Champion was the runner-up in the Premier League at the end of May and landed the World Cup of Darts – alongside Jonny Clayton – in mid-June.
With 9/2 odds, event sponsor, Betfred, quotes the industry top-priced about Price winning the tournament. 5/2 odds are available about him reaching the final. 6/5 is also offered on Price winning three games – and therefore ‘winning’ his quarter draw-bracket.
