World Seniors Darts Championship 2023 | Day Four Preview and Order of Play
The 2023 World Seniors Championship draws to a close at the Circus Tavern on Sunday as the final eight face off for the title.
A high quality Quarter-Final line-up features two World Champions and a host of other decorated stars vying to remain on course for the £30,000 top prize in Purfleet.
The afternoon session on Day Four will play host to the Quarter-Final ties, before the Semi-Finals and final are held in the evening.
Reigning champion Robert Thornton continues his bid to successfully defend the title when he comes up against current WDF World Champion Neil Duff in a blockbuster clash.
Thornton, who also claimed the World Seniors Matchplay title last year, has registered back-to-back 90+ averages in dominant straight sets wins over Roland Scholten and Scott Mitchell so far this weekend.
The former UK Open and World Grand Prix champion remains a formidable force on the big stage and boasts six of the top ten averages in the brief history of this competition.
Duff, meanwhile, has enjoyed an impressive debut Seniors campaign so far, coming through a high quality opener against Lisa Ashton in a deciding set, before brushing aside 1983 World Champion Keith Deller 3-0 with a second successive 88 average.
Lakeside champion last April, the proud Northern Irishman will be determined to replicate that success in his first televised appearance since.
The opening match of the afternoon sees 16-time World Champion Phil Taylor take on home favourite Richie Howson.
Taylor finished runner-up in the World Seniors Masters and World Seniors Matchplay last year following a 3-0 defeat to Painter in the Quarter-Finals of this event, and dug deep to recover from 2-1 down for a narrow 3-2 victory over Northern Ireland’s Colin McGarry in his opener this year.
He then saw off debutant qualifier Darren Johnson 3-1 in the Last 16 with the aid of a vintage 161 checkout and will now look to crush the hopes of an in-form Howson.
Howson headed into the event having claimed back-to-back qualifying titles last month, and ‘The Owl’ delighted his strong contingent of supporters on Thursday by edging out World Seniors Masters champion David Cameron in a fifth set decider, before returning to defeat Andy Jenkins 3-1 on Saturday afternoon.
Another unmissable encounter sees former Players Champion Kevin Painter take on former World Masters winner Mark Dudbridge.
Painter, who was famously beaten by Taylor in a sudden death world final on this very stage in 2004, gained a degree of revenge on his long-term nemesis with a 3-0 victory in Round Two here last year before eventually bowing out in the Semi-Finals.
He is yet to drop a set in reaching the Last Eight this time around, having swept aside Ronnie Baxter and Dennis Harbour with successive 86 averages.
Dudbridge, meanwhile, has enjoyed a seamless return to the televised stage, storming past former Premier League champion Glen Durrant in straight sets before overcoming Terry Jenkins 3-1 with another 88 average.
The 2005 world finalist was one of eight players to receive an invite into the event and has grasped the opportunity with both hands in his first televised appearance since the 2016 UK Open.
Elsewhere, Leonard Gates continues to fly the flag for the USA as he takes on former World Trophy winner Darryl Fitton.
Gates has emerged as a strong contender for glory on his World Seniors debut, having recorded the highest average in the event to date (96.9) in his 3-0 rout of Martin Adams in Round Two.
The reigning North American champion opened up with a straight sets thrashing of Tony O’Shea and has again entertained the crowd with his trademark dance moves on stage.
Fitton, in contrast, has dug deep to battle through two gruelling last set deciders to reach his first World Seniors Quarter-Final.
The Dazzler firstly edged out 1997 BDO World Champion Les Wallace on Day One, before holding his nerve to deny three-time World Champion John Part 3-2 late on Saturday night.
The action gets under way from 1pm GMT, with Quarter-Finals ties to be contested over the best of five sets, Semi-Finals best of seven and the final best of nine.
The deciding set of any match must be won by two clear legs, until the score line reaches 5-5 – when the 11th leg will be sudden death.
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World Seniors Championship 2023 Day Four Schedule
Sunday February 12
Afternoon Session (1pm-5pm)
Quarter-Finals
Richie Howson v Phil Taylor
Darryl Fitton v Leonard Gates
Mark Dudbridge v Kevin Painter
Robert Thornton v Neil Duff
Evening Session (7pm-11pm)
Semi-Finals
Howson/Taylor v Gates/Fitton
Dudbridge/Painter v Thornton/Duff
Final
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