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World Darts Championship 2023/24: Day One Preview and Order of Play – Smith stars on opening night

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Michael Smith survives Kevin Doets scare to kick-start World Championship defence

Live Darts on Saturday: World Darts Championship Day Two Preview and Order of Play

Jamie Shaw in World Darts Championship 16 Dec 2023

Gary Anderson salutes the crowd (Photo credit: Michael Cooper/PDC)

Gary Anderson and Dave Chisnall are among the star names to kick off their World Darts Championship campaigns at Ally Pally on Saturday.

The first blockbuster double-header of the tournament features six First Round ties and two Second Round ties, with a host of decorated darters in action.

The afternoon session sees six-time PDC major finalist Chisnall commence his 13th Ally Pally appearance with a tie against Cameron Menzies.

Chisnall’s best run in the sport’s blue riband event came behind closed doors in 2021 when he reached the Semi-Finals, sensationally whitewashing Michael van Gerwen 5-0 with a 107 average along the way.

Since then, Chizzy has suffered back-to-back Third Round exits at Ally Pally, but the bulk of his success has come on the European Tour, with three titles this season in addition to two Players Championship triumphs.

His run to the Third Round of the recent Players Championship Finals ended an unwanted streak of five consecutive major televised ranking events without a win, and the world number 11 will be determined to recapture his best form on the sport’s most iconic stage.

Four-time Challenge Tour winner Menzies is making his second successive World Championship appearance and began in commanding fashion by defeating Rusty-Jake Rodriguez in straight sets on opening night.

The charismatic Scot has reached the Quarter-Finals of a ProTour event this season and looks to have done enough to save his tour card, coming into the event as world number 63.

The day’s action kicks off with a tie between debutants Lee Evans and Sandro Eric Sosing, with man of the moment Luke Humphries awaiting the winner.

Evans, who has competed in four European Tour events during his first season as a Tour Card holder, faces a tricky opener against Filipino star Sosing – who was beaten in a deciding leg by Haruki Muramatsu in the final of the PDC Asian Championship in October.

Connor Scutt marks his PDC World Championship debut with a tie against Poland’s Krzysztof Kciuk.

Scutt, 27, enjoyed a landmark run to the final of Players Championship 27 in October – where he was beaten 8-5 by Kciuk’s compatriot Radek Szagański.

Kciuk returns to Ally Pally for the first time since 2010 – when he was beaten by Muramatsu in the Preliminary Round – after coming through the recent East Europe qualifier, defeating emerging star Sebastian Bialecki 7-5 in the final.

Jules van Dongen, one of three Americans in this year’s field, starts out against fellow debutant Darren Penhall.

Van Dongen has enjoyed a much-improved second season as a tour card holder, climbing into the world’s top 80 after runs to the Last 16 on both the European Tour and ProTour, but requires a deep run in the World Championship if he is to have any chance of retaining his place on the tour next year.

Australian qualifier Penhall has dominated the DPA circuit this year, reaching 18 finals in 25 events and winning 13 of those to storm to the top of the DPA Order of Merit.

The evening session features a stand-out clash between two-time World Champion Gary Anderson and 2010 world finalist Simon Whitlock.

Anderson is one of only three players to have successfully retained the PDC world title, having triumphed in 2015 and 2016, and the Flying Scotsman has enjoyed a remarkable resurgence this term.

Anderson has scooped a hat-trick of Players Championship titles and has reached a further two finals, while also finishing runner-up alongside Peter Wright for Scotland in this summer’s World Cup of Darts.

The 52-year-old boasts a clinical record at Alexandra Palace, reaching five finals since 2011, as well as a further two Semi-Finals.

Whitlock finished runner-up to Phil Taylor on his Ally Pally debut 13 years ago and has gone on to reach a further two Semi-Finals, though his recent record makes for ominous reading, with just one run beyond the Third Round in the last decade.

The former European Champion and World Cup of Darts winner has endured a torrid spell over the past 12 months, failing to qualify for four of the six major televised ranking tournaments this year and dropping to 43rd in the Order of Merit as a result – his lowest ranking since joining the PDC.

The Aussie darting icon was forced to dig deep to seal a gruelling 3-2 victory over Paolo Nebrida of the Philippines on Friday, recovering from losing the first set.

The flamboyant Scott Williams starts his second successive World Championship campaign with a clash against Japan’s Haruki Muramatsu.

Williams enjoyed a remarkable season of success in 2022, storming to four Challenge Tour titles as well as a maiden Players Championship title, but has struggled to replicate that blistering form in his first year as a tour card holder.

The 33-year-old did, however, embark on a fine run to the Semi-Finals of the Hungarian Darts Trophy – marking his best performance of the season by some distance.

Muramatsu returns for a fifth World Championship appearance – his first since 2015 – having claimed glory in the PDC Asian Championship.

The 46-year-old, who has never been beyond the First Round of the sport’s showpiece event, featured in last month’s Grand Slam of Darts but bowed out in the group stage following three straight defeats.

Irish sensation Keane Barry kicks off his fifth World Championship appearance with a tie against Filipino debutant Reynaldo Rivera.

Barry remains one of the sport’s brightest young prospects at the age of 21 but already boasts a wealth of experience, having reached the Semi-Finals of the 2022 UK Open and racked up five Development Tour titles.

The world number 41 has two Euro Tour Quarter-Finals to his name this season and is out to progress beyond the Second Round at Ally Pally for the first time.

Rivera is one of a record four representatives from the Philippines this year, having finished fourth on the Asian Tour Order of Merit and picked up a maiden title this year.

Former World Masters finalist Jamie Hughes faces a tough opening test against former World Seniors Master David Cameron.

Hughes was twice a Lakeside semi-finalist and claimed his maiden PDC ranking title at the 2019 Czech Open, but has dropped to 62nd in the PDC Order of Merit after a barren 2023 in which he has continued to battle injury.

Canadian ace Cameron defeated Ritchie Edhouse on his PDC World Championship debut last year before going down 3-1 to Danny Noppert, though his finest hour came at Lakeside in 2022 when he defeated 16-time World Champion Phil Taylor in the final to land his maiden televised title at the World Seniors Masters.

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.

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World Darts Championship 2023/24 Day Two Schedule

Saturday December 16

Afternoon Session (12.30pm-5pm)
Lee Evans v Sandro Eric Sosing (R1)
Connor Scutt v Krzysztof Kciuk (R1)
Jules van Dongen v Darren Penhall (R1)
Dave Chisnall v Cameron Menzies (R2)

Evening Session (7pm-11pm)
Jamie Hughes v David Cameron (R1)
Keane Barry v Reynaldo Rivera (R1)
Scott Williams v Haruki Muramatsu (R1)
Gary Anderson v Simon Whitlock (R2)

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Live Darts on Saturday: World Darts Championship Day Two Preview and Order of Play

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