Live Darts on Tuesday: World Darts Championship Day Five Preview and Order of Play

Michael van Gerwen commences his challenge for a fourth World Darts Championship title at Alexandra Palace on Tuesday.

Day Five of the sport’s annual showpiece features another star-studded double session with three former World Champions among the line-up.

Van Gerwen gets his latest quest to regain the Sid Waddell trophy under way with a tie against Irish youngster Keane Barry in the evening session.

The Dutch sensation claimed glory here in 2014, 2017 and 2019, joining only Phil Taylor in landing three or more PDC world titles in the 30-year history of the competition.

Van Gerwen boasts a prolific record at Ally Pally, reaching the final in four of his last seven appearances, including in last year’s event when he was denied by nine-darter Michael Smith in a pulsating contest.

MVG returns as the number two seed and is eyeing what would be a sole major ranking title of the season, having finished runner-up in the UK Open and Players Championship Finals, though he did scoop a record seventh Premier League crown, as well as winning the World Series Finals.

His opening test comes in the shape of 21-year-old Barry – the former UK Open semi-finalist who is looking to surpass this stage of the World Championship for the first time after defeating debutant qualifier Reynaldo Rivera 3-1 in Round One.

Meanwhile, ten-time major champion James Wade tops the bill in the afternoon session as he faces Canadian number one Matt Campbell.

Wade is widely regarded as the greatest player yet to reach a World Championship final, falling at the Semi-Final hurdle on four occasions – most recently two years ago.

After briefly dropping out of the world’s top 16 for the first time since 2006, Wade has enjoyed a superb resurgence at the business end of the season, finishing runner-up in the European Championship and reaching the Semi-Finals of the Grand Slam.

Seeded number 13, ‘The Machine’ will be looking to maintain that form on the sport’s biggest stage – one which he has a below-par record on by his high standards, with just one run beyond the Quarter-Finals in the past decade.

Wade faces a tricky opener against former ProTour event finalist Campbell – who held his nerve to edge out Lourence Ilagan in a deciding set on Sunday to register his first win on the World Championship stage with a 93 average.

The afternoon session also features a clash between former World Youth champion Keegan Brown and Croatian number one Boris Krcmar.

Brown held on to the 32nd and final ProTour Order of Merit qualification spot by a margin of just £750 over Bradley Brooks, and his best displays of the season have seen him reach the Quarter-Finals of both a European Tour event and the World Series Finals.

Krcmar returns for his fourth consecutive World Championship after coming through the Tour Card holder qualifier three weeks ago, taking out 124 in the deciding leg against Pascal Rupprecht to clinch his spot at Ally Pally.

Local favourite Ritchie Edhouse takes on Jeffrey de Graaf for the right to meet Jose De Sousa in Round Two.

Edhouse, who hails from nearby Enfield, regained his Tour Card in 2021 and is vying to reach the Second Round of the World Championship for the third time in four appearances.

Dutch-born De Graaf, who now competes under the Swedish banner has claimed a brace of titles on the Nordic & Baltic tour this year and returns for a third PDC World Championship appearance since 2017.

Multiple PDC ranking title winner Ian White marks the start of his 12th PDC World Championship campaign with a tie against Japanese debutant Tomoya Goto.

White returns to Ally Pally after failing to qualify last year for the first time since 2011, and the three-time Euro Tour event winner is in need of a win here to safeguard his tour card for next season.

White, who reached the Quarter-Finals in 2014, starts out against 27-year-old Goto – who has picked up two PDC Asian Tour titles this year and has represented Japan in the last two stagings of the World Cup of Darts.

The evening session kicks off with a clash of youth and experience as Dutch prospect Wessel Nijman meets darting icon Steve Beaton.

Beaton is making his 23rd consecutive appearance in the PDC World Championship, having famously claimed Lakeside glory back in 1996.

The evergreen 59-year-old continues to showcase one of the smoothest throwing actions in the sport and will look to utilise his vast experience over the 23-year-old Dutchman.

Nijman, who has claimed a hat-trick of Development Tour titles in 2023 and also reached the Semi-Finals of the World Youth Championship, makes his TV debut after completing a suspension for match-fixing during the 2020 Modus home series.

German Championship winner Ricardo Pietreczko aims to avoid a banana skin at the hands of two-time Women’s World Champion Mikuru Suzuki.

Pietreczko heads to Ally Pally for the first time following an incredible breakthrough year which has seen him claim Euro Tour glory and surge into the world’s top 40.

The German star has also featured in the European Championship, Players Championship Finals and Grand Slam – where he was beaten by Beau Greaves before defeating Nathan Aspinall in his final group fixture.

Pietreczko’s temperament may come under scrutiny again as he faces the 2019 and 2020 BDO Women’s World Champion – who is returning for a second stint at Ally Pally after losing out to James Richardson on her debut four years ago.

Suzuki has landed a trio of PDC Women’s Series titles this year and will hold fond memories of her debut here, when she pushed Richardson all the way to a last-leg decider.

Elsewhere, Belgian power-scorer Mike De Decker takes on German qualifier Dragutin Horvat.

De Decker is enjoying his best spell as a professional to date, with his consistent ProTour performances earning him a debut appearance in both the World Matchplay and World Grand Prix this year.

Horvat returns for a first World Championship appearance since 2017 after scooping the German Super League title for the second time, and he has also landed a Challenge Tour title this year.

The action gets under way from 12.30pm GMT, with First Round and Second Round matches to be contested over the best five sets, best of five legs per set.

The tie break rule does not apply to First Round matches, meaning the fifth leg of a deciding set would be sudden death, while the final set in matches from Round Two onwards must be won by two clear legs, unless the score reaches 5-5, in which case a sudden-death leg will be played.

World Darts Championship 2023/24 Day Five Schedule

Tuesday December 19

Afternoon Session (12.30pm-5pm)
Ian White v Tomoya Goto (R1)
Ritchie Edhouse v Jeffrey de Graaf (R1)
Keegan Brown v Boris Krcmar (R1)
James Wade v Matt Campbell (R2)

Evening Session (7pm-11pm)
Steve Beaton v Wessel Nijman (R1)
Mike De Decker v Dragutin Horvat (R1)
Ricardo Pietreczko v Mikuru Suzuki (R1)
Michael van Gerwen v Keane Barry (R2)