Decision at the Darts World Cup: Can Price manage what van Gerwen doesn’t?

Saturday, January 01, 2022

Decision at the Darts World Cup
Does Price manage what van Gerwen can’t?

From Kevin Schulte

The Darts World Cup is entering the final phase, with the quarter-finals on New Year’s Day. With defending champion Gerwyn Price and predecessor Peter Wright, but without Michael van Gerwen. Who has the best chance of winning the “Ally Pally” title now?

The 2022 World Darts Championship in London will be overshadowed by the corona virus, but it also has a lot to offer in terms of sport. An enormous number of games were only decided in the last possible set up to the quarter-finals. There have already been one or the other big surprise. In the end, however, the usual suspects should decide the title among themselves. The favorites, insider tips and outsiders in the power ranking.

1. Gerwyn Price: The world number one and defending champion got himself back on track with a never-endangered 4-1 win against Dirk van Duijvenbode. In the game against the Dutchman, Price won twelve legs in a row. His previous appearances, however, were less uncompromising. At the beginning he had to tremble for a long time against qualifier Ritchie Edhouse (3: 1), against the Belgian Kim Huybrechts Price was lucky (4: 3). All in all, his way through the tournament so far sounds like a world champion. The most important tournament usually does not win if you play your opponents in rows against the wall, but if you survive critical moments.

In the quarter-finals, the “Iceman” has to play against Michael Smith and thus against the player who has so far convinced the most. But unlike Price, the Englishman doesn’t know how to win big titles. That speaks for Price, who will be happy not to have to face his compatriot Jonny Clayton. In the game against the high-speed thrower Smith, Price can also act tactically: every now and then slow down, cheer loudly, incite the audience. It is questionable whether Smith is as strong in such a situation as he was last time.

Price could cement his number 1 status with another world championship title and defend the title as only the fourth player in the Darts World Cup. So far, only Phil Taylor, Adrian Lewis and Gary Anderson have achieved this, Michael van Gerwen has not yet succeeded. With two world championship titles in a row, the ex-rugby professional would not be displaced from the top of the world rankings for at least another year and could thus usher in a new era. It is already clear: Even after the World Cup, the “Iceman” greets from first place, the only question is how big his lead will be.

2. Peter Wright: The Scot won the tournament two years ago and has been an integral part of the darts elite since then. The 51-year-old’s trophy cabinet is now full. Wright certainly has no objection to another World Cup trophy. In the tournament so far, Wright only caught a weak quarter of an hour when he fell 2-0 against Damon Heta in the second round. After he continued to play other darts in typical Wright fashion, things were back to normal. Wright turned the game around and had surprisingly few problems with Ryan Searle in the round of 16.

His quarter-final opponent is World Cup surprise Callan Rydz. Farm owner Wright has an advantage because, unlike his opponent, he has played such long games. It takes five sets to win, six in the semifinals and seven in the final. Rydz has never played more than five sentences in a row in his career.

3. Michael Smith: His opponent in the quarter-final, Gerwyn Price, speaks primarily against the “Bully Boy”. Should Smith impress in the duel with the defending champion as much as he did in the round of 16 against Jonny Clayton, he will definitely be dangerous to Price. If Smith doesn’t let Price get him out of line and, unlike in the past, has his nerves under control, he can win the game. His way to the long-awaited first big title would then be clear at the most important tournament in the darts world.

Smith, who just like Wright lives on a farm, can already play freely: Thanks to his brutally strong World Cup appearances, he should be sure of a wildcard for the financially lucrative Premier League. That clears your mind and could make the “Bully Boy” even more dangerous.

4. Gary Anderson: Many did not believe him very much this year, which was so weak for long stretches. Also because the draw for the two-time world champion held some high hurdles in store. At the beginning Anderson had to get rid of the ex-world champion Adrian Lewis, after a famous comeback against Ian White (4: 3 after 0: 3) Rob Cross was waiting for the Scot. Against the trained electrician, “The Flying Scotsman” was just an outsider. But Anderson still regularly surpasses himself in the most important games, as his 4-3 win has proven.

In the quarter-finals of the World Cup, the experienced darts legend Luke Humphries meets one of the most promising talents of all. Anderson is the favorite, but if he wins he would have to play two more duels as an outsider. Possibly against Wright in the semifinals and possibly in a remake of the previous year’s final against Price.

5. James Wade: The odd Englishman has won almost everything there is to be won. Only the world title is missing. James Wade has only made three semi-finals in 17 attempts. That’s far too little for a player in his class. After a relaxed tournament, in which “The Machine” was never challenged, this time a big World Cup is on the way. Wade, who rarely wins games spectacularly, but in an impressive manner lined up work victory after work victory, defeated two Dutch qualifiers in Maik Kuivenhoven and Martijn Kleermaker. In between he got a bye because Vincent van der Voort was not allowed to compete in the third round because of a positive corona test.

Wade is also the favorite against Mervyn King in the quarterfinals. It is quite possible that Wade will move into the semi-finals with another work victory. He has often proven that he can be a disgusting opponent for the potentially stronger scoring machines Price and Smith. But it can be a 180 before the world champion title. Wade has not thrown the high score once in the entire tournament.

6. Callan Rydz: The 23 year old Englishman is the biggest surprise of this World Cup. The unseeded Rydz won his four games in a fast run and only made a single set. Which was not due to the quality of his opponents. In round 3 Rydz defeated world number tenth Nathan Aspinall with a surprisingly smooth 4-0, in the previous round Brendan Dolan averaged over 100 points in Rydz’s 3-0 win Made once at this World Cup: Price, Wright, Smith and Rydz.

What speaks against the Englishman in the World Championship race, however, is the fact that he is still completely inexperienced compared to his opponents. On the way to a possible title win, Rydz would probably need three sensational victories.

7. Luke Humphries: Rydz is one of the greatest promises in English darts, along with Humphries. At his fifth participation in the World Cup, “Cool Hand Luke” made it into the quarter-finals for the third (!) Time. The “Ally Pally” suits the 26-year-old, but the round of the last eight has always been the end of the line. After a 1: 5 against Michael Smith in 2019 and a 3: 5 against Peter Wright the year after, Gary Anderson is waiting this time. Humphries is an outsider, but has always come up trumps from this role. At the 2019 World Cup, Humphries sensationally defeated the then defending champion Cross, and in the spring of 2021 the Englishman prevailed against a certain Michael van Gerwen in the semi-finals of the UK Open.

8. Mervyn King: At the age of 55, “The King” is the oldest quarter-finalist in this world championship. And possibly the greatest underdog in the title fight. King, who has been placed between 16 and 24 in the world rankings for years and regularly surprises, has not yet won a major PDC tournament in his long career. Long games in particular can become a problem for the Englishman who has had to deal with severe back problems in the past. Against James Wade it could work with another victory, but in all probability the semi-finals are the highest of emotions for him.