2024 Swiss Darts Trophy R2 Preview

It was another solid showing from James Punt on Friday night with a trio of winners from five bets. Hopefully there’s more of the same to come this afternoon. You can check out his 2024 Swiss Darts Trophy R2 preview and tips below.

Gian van Veen vs. Callan Rydz

Rydz did the job yesterday, sticking to the task and beating Brendan Dolan 6-1. It was a good performance against a player who was throwing well, but Rydz kept his foot down. He has won five of his last ten matches and we will now find out if he can keep going, or will the demons return. Rydz knew that he had a great record vs. Dolan and that Dolan was on a massive losing run.

Gian van Veen is in good form, winning seven of his last ten matches, including a run to the final in last weekend’s Hungarian Darts Trophy. He has better scoring power than Rydz and is more consistent.

Their H2H record is 2-1 to Van Veen, both his wins being by a deciding leg, while Rydz’ win was to nil. All matches were played in 2023.

Van Veen is the 1.61 favourite and the odds look about right to me. No bet.

2024 Swiss Darts Trophy R2 Tip: No bet

Ryan Searle vs. Roger Hertig

The Swiss crowd, and it is a big one, have two players in the second round. First up is Roger Hertig, who beat Ryan Mielke 6-5, and it is fair to say that he dragged Miekle down to his level, with both players averaging 74. I doubt Searle will be quite so accommodating.

Searle has won seven of his last ten matches and nine of his eleven opening matches on the Euro Tour this year. He usually gets tough opponents, but he faced another local qualifier in Budapest last weekend, and he won that 6-1. Expect something similar.

The bookmakers do and under 7.5 legs is just 1.83, Searle to win 6-1 is 3.50. There has to be the chance that Searle just wins the lot this time.

2024 Swiss Darts Trophy R2 Tip: 0.5 point Searle to win 6-0 @ 4.50 with Betfair

Rob Cross vs. Andrew Gilding

Gilding beat the Hungarian qualifier Nandor Pres 6-0, despite averaging just 86.71. He has not been feeling well and his job of securing a place in the European Championships seems to have been done. There is the matter of Grand Prix qualification, and he is now one place, and £1k, short of qualifying for that. He will be aware of that.

Rob Cross has not been at his best since his return after a month off, but he has still won twelve of his eighteen matches since coming back.

Both players are playing with a little too much inconsistency to make this a comfortable tie for betting on. Their H2H record is 2-2 and their last meeting was just last weekend in Budapest, which Cross won 6-1.

Cross may be keen to make sure Gilding doesn’t qualify for the Grand Prix, as it was Gilding who knocked him out last year.

Cross is the 1.48 favourite, Gilding 3.00. I will back Cross on the handicap.

2024 Swiss Darts Trophy R2 Tip: 1 point Cross to win -1.5 legs @ 1.75 with Ladbrokes

Josh Rock vs. Jermaine Wattimena

Wattimena got half our job done last night, covering the handicap when beating Ritchie Edhouse 6-4, but missing out on the chance to win 6-3. He only averaged 89 but played well enough and he only just missed three big out shots. Had those landed, he was on for a much easier win. Wattimena has won six of his last ten matches and is in good form.

Josh Rock is playing a light schedule since becoming a dad again. He played in Budapest last weekend, reaching the quarter final, but he has only played five matches in the last month, winning three. He has played well, so the lack of match practice has not been hurting him.

Their H2H record is 2-1 to Wattimena and in Rock, he gets to play another fast paced player. I can see this being quite close.

2024 Swiss Darts Trophy R2 Tip: 1 point over 9.5 legs @ 2.10 with Skybet, Betfair

Damon Heta vs. Madars Razma

Razzmatazz did a professional job against a local qualifier yesterday, averaging 94 in a 6-3 win. His target of reaching the European Championship is still alive, but he needs to win this and at least one more match if he is to do so. He has won eight of his last ten matches and is playing well.

Heta will not be looking forward to playing Razma as he lost to him on Tuesday. The Heat has won six of his last ten matches and is playing some great darts, but also some poor darts.

Their H2H record extends to just Tuesday’s Players Championship match, which Razma won 6-4. Will (recent) history repeat itself?

Heta is the 1.44 favourite, but I am happy to back Razma to repeat his win of earlier this week at good odds.

2024 Swiss Darts Trophy R2 Tip: 1 point Razma to win @ 3.40 with Betvictor

Ross Smith vs. Mike De Decker

It took a few legs for De Decker to get going against Graham Hall yesterday. It was a 6-2 win at the end, but he did go 0-2 before he started firing. De Decker has won seven of his last ten matches and is in good form.

Ross Smith beat De Decker on the Belgian’s home turf a few weeks ago. Smudger has won five of his last ten matches and he does seem to find winning harder than he should do. He loses a lot of matches despite hitting big averages. He has had two losing ton plus averages in his last ten matches.

Their H2H record is 3-1 to Smith. He has won their last three in a row and De Decker’s only win was back in 2016.

We have backed De Decker outright, so I will not be playing this match, but hopefully De Decker finds his scoring boots from the off today. If so, he has a reasonable chance.

2024 Swiss Darts Trophy R2 Tip: No Bet

Daryl Gurney vs. Karel Sedlacek

The two former stablemates know each other well, and I do not like betting on ‘friendly’ matches.

Sedlacek is a much underrated player and is capable of taking down the big names on his day. He has won just four of his last ten matches, including his 6-4 win over Jim Williams yesterday. He averaged 95 and it was a good performance.

Gurney has won six of his last ten matches. He is playing well but is again finding stringing wins together tricky.

They have met three times, with Gurney winning two, including a 6-5 three weeks ago. He is the 1.63 favourite with Sedlacek 2.38. The odds look about right to me and I will pass on this one. No bet.

2024 Swiss Darts Trophy R2 Tip: No Bet

Danny Noppert vs. Cameron Menzies

Menzies post-match interview lasted nearly as long as his 6-3 win over Jonny Clayton. It was an OK performance, with neither player really firing. Clayton was very poor on the doubles and that allowed Menzies to get the win. He has won six of his last ten matches and has been playing better than he did last night.

Noppert has won six of his last ten matches and he too has been playing some good stuff. He has only lost one of his opening matches on the Euro Tour this season, and Menzies has his work cut out today.

Their H2H record is 1-0 to Noppert. That was a Euro Tour match last year which he won 6-4. Another close match, probably with Noppert winning looks likely.

2024 Swiss Darts Trophy R2 Tip: 1 point over 9.5 legs @ 2.10 with Betfair

-JamesPunt