Live Darts on Tuesday | World Matchplay 2025 Day Four Preview and Order of Play
The Second Round action commences at the Betfred World Matchplay in Blackpool on Tuesday with a host of decorated stars battling it out.
The opening round saw no fewer than seven seeds crash out of the competition, while a record six Dutchmen have progressed to the Last 16.
Three of those Dutch representatives feature across the opening two matches on Tuesday night, kicking off with a clash between World Cup team-mates Gian van Veen and Danny Noppert.
The pair enjoyed a superb run to the semi-finals of last month’s World Cup in Frankfurt, which included an 8-0 whitewash of Scotland in the Second Round with a combined average of 100.2.
Now, they go head-to-head at the iconic Winter Gardens for the first time in what is a vastly open top quarter of the draw.
Van Veen pulled off a sensational 10-8 victory to dethrone defending champion Luke Humphries on opening night and is eyeing a second major ranking quarter-final appearance of the season to follow on from March’s UK Open.
Noppert, seeded number 16, coasted to a 10-2 demolition of a struggling Cameron Menzies in Round One and is bidding to emulate his run to the semi-finals here three years ago.
James Wade, the 2007 World Matchplay champion, faces a showdown with emerging star Wessel Nijman.
Wade boasts an incredible record of longevity in this event, having finished runner-up on debut in 2006 before lifting the trophy a year later and going on to reach a further four finals.
The 42-year-old is making his 20th consecutive appearance in the World Matchplay, with his run to last year’s semi-finals sparking a superb spell of resurgence which has seen him reach the UK Open final and return to the winner’s circle on the ProTour in 2025.
Wade produced statistically his best-ever display in this event when he thrashed Joe Cullen 10-3 with a 104.4 average and will be keen to pick up from where he left off and utilise his vast experience against the 25-year-old debutant.
Nijman comfortably qualified as the fifth highest ranked player on the ProTour Order of Merit, having reached two European Tour semi-finals this season, and announced himself onto the Empress Ballroom stage by dumping out 2023 champion Nathan Aspinall 10-6 with a 101.7 average.
Two former World Champions collide in a mouth-watering encounter as fourth seed Stephen Bunting faces 13th seed Gary Anderson.
Semi-finalist at the World Championship, Bunting finished bottom of the table on his Premier League return but has enjoyed a superb season otherwise, winning two World Series titles, as well as the International Darts Open.
The former Lakeside Champion overcame Ryan Joyce 10-8 in the first round with a 98 average to reach the Last 16 here for only the fourth time in 11 appearances.
Anderson, the 2018 champion, has been an ever-present at the Matchplay since 2009 and was also runner-up behind closed doors in 2020, though has failed to surpass the Second Round since returning to the Winter Gardens.
The 54-year-old has picked up both a European Tour and Players Championship title this year and warmed up for this event by finishing runner-up in last weekend’s Baltic Sea Darts Open.
The popular Scotsman also averaged 98 in his routine 10-5 win over Luke Woodhouse and could climb back up to world number nine with a win over The Bullet.
The final match of the night sees 2023 runner-up Jonny Clayton take on reigning World Grand Prix champion Mike De Decker.
Clayton has enjoyed a terrific season so far, finishing runner-up in both the World Masters and World Cup of Darts, while also claiming the Dutch Championship title and a Players Championship title.
The Welshman is defending £100,000 in prize money from his run to the final two years ago and kicked off his campaign with a high quality 10-7 win over Martin Schindler – who averaged 103.4 to Clayton’s 99.6.
De Decker is making only his second World Matchplay appearance, having lost in Round One two years ago, and started the season by finishing runner-up in the Belgian Darts Open before suffering a string of early exits in televised competition.
The sole Belgian in this year’s World Matchplay, De Decker registered his first win at the hands of 12th seed Dave Chisnall on Sunday.
The action gets under way from 7pm BST, with Second Round matches to be contested over the best of 21 legs.
Matches will be extended if necessary for a maximum of six extra legs before a sudden death leg is required.
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Betfred World Matchplay 2025 Day Four Schedule
Tuesday July 22
Second Round
7pm-11pm
Gian van Veen v Danny Noppert
Wessel Nijman v James Wade
Stephen Bunting v Gary Anderson
Jonny Clayton v Mike De Decker
