European Darts Open 2023 | Day Two Preview and Order of Play
The seeds enter the fray at the European Darts Open on Saturday as the Second Round action takes centre stage in Leverkusen.
The second of 13 Euro Tour events this season features 48 players battling it out for £175,000 in prize money at the Ostermann Arena in Leverkusen, Germany, from March 24-26.
Friday saw the 32 qualifiers go head-to-head in Round One, with a clutch of big names among those to suffer early exits.
Undoubtedly the pick of Saturday’s ties sees Dutch darting icons Michael van Gerwen and Raymond van Barneveld renew their rivalry.
Van Gerwen is the most successful player in European Tour history, having racked up a staggering 35 titles, five of which coming at the European Darts Open.
Mighty Mike is unbeaten in his last three appearances at the European Open, while Van Barneveld’s sole Euro Tour title to date came in this competition back in 2012.
Van Gerwen, runner-up in the recent UK Open, is the runaway leader at the top of the Premier League table and will be out to emulate his haul of three Euro Tour titles last season.
Van Barneveld averaged 98 in a high quality 6-3 win over Czech qualifier Filip Šebesta on Friday and will be determined to get one over on his long time nemesis.
Elsewhere, the afternoon session includes a clash between 2022 UK Open champion Danny Noppert and reigning Masters champion Chris Dobey – who starred on home soil in the Premier League in Newcastle less than 48 hours ago.
Dave Chisnall, the Baltic Sea Darts Open champion, starts his quest for back-to-back Euro Tour titles with a tie against former BDO world finalist Jim Williams – who dispatched John Henderson 6-2 in his opener.
Reigning European Champion Ross Smith faces a formidable opener against last year’s Premier League runner-up Joe Cullen.
Former World Champion Rob Cross opens up against former ProTour winner Ryan Joyce, while World Cup of Darts winner Damon Heta meets an in-form Andy Boulton – who edged out Luke Woodhouse in a deciding leg on Friday.
Recent Players Championship event winner Dirk van Duijvenbode looks to continue his flying start to the year when he faces former World Youth Champion Ted Evetts, as world number 13 Ryan Searle starts out against former Lakeside World Champion Stephen Bunting.
Former Premier League champion Jonny Clayton aims to recapture some form this weekend, and he opens up with a tie against Suffolk left-hander Ryan Meikle.
The evening session kicks off with a show-down between back-to-back Premier League weekly title winner Gerwyn Price and a resurgent Krzysztof Ratajski.
Price added to last week’s Nottingham triumph by prevailing in Newcastle on Thursday to close the gap at the top of the league table, and the Welshman will be keen to pick up from where he left off in averaging almost 115 in the final.
Ratajski, meanwhile, started the week by reaching the final of Players Championship Eight, losing out to Gary Anderson in the final, and began his campaign here with a narrow 6-5 win over Bradley Brooks.
Former World Matchplay champions Dimitri Van den Bergh and James Wade go head-to-head, with Wade looking to make up for lost time having been forced to withdraw prior to his Semi-Final against the Belgian here last year due to illness.
World Champion Michael Smith, a winner of five European Tour titles, aims to crush the hopes of Host Nation qualifier Rene Eidams.
World number two Peter Wright, who currently sits rock bottom of the Premier League table, looks to avert a potential banana skin at the hands of emerging German star Ricardo Pietreczko – who landed a 170 checkout in his First Round win over Geert Nentjes.
Luke Humphries, the number one seed after winning four Euro Tour titles last season, starts out against multiple ranking event winner Brendan Dolan – who thrashed Steve Lennon 6-1 in the opening round.
Josh Rock, the number 16 seed and reigning World Youth Champion, faces a rejuvenated Ian White – who produced a stirring comeback from 5-2 down to defeat German star Gabriel Clemens 6-5 on Friday with a 98.7 average.
Home favourite Martin Schindler aims to thrill a bumper Leverkusen crowd by overcoming Ireland’s William O’Connor – twice a Euro Tour finalist.
The action gets under way from 12pm GMT, with Second Round matches to be contested over the best of 11 legs.
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European Darts Open 2023 Day Two Schedule
All times GMT (Local time one hour ahead)
Saturday March 25
Second Round
Afternoon Session (12pm-4pm)
Damon Heta v Andy Boulton
Rob Cross v Ryan Joyce
Dave Chisnall v Jim Williams
Dirk van Duijvenbode v Ted Evetts
Joe Cullen v Ross Smith
Jonny Clayton v Ryan Meikle
Danny Noppert v Chris Dobey
Ryan Searle v Stephen Bunting
Evening Session (6pm-10pm)
Gerwyn Price v Krzysztof Ratajski
Luke Humphries v Brendan Dolan
Michael Smith v Rene Eidams
Peter Wright v Ricardo Pietreczko
Michael van Gerwen v Raymond van Barneveld
Dimitri Van den Bergh v James Wade
Martin Schindler v William O’Connor
Josh Rock v Ian White
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