Sunday Austrian Darts Open Preview and Tips – JP
Sunday Austrian Darts Open Betting Tips
Another excellent night for James Punt in Austria last night. Three of his five tips won and we were a double away from a 5.50 correct score touch in the MVG match. He tipped up six winners from eight tips in total on Saturday and all three of our ante-post bets are still standing. Fingers crossed for another great day of darts (and winners), check out James’ Sunday Austrian Darts Open preview is below.
Daryl Gurney vs. Andrew Gilding
Superchin beat top seed Luke Humphries 6-1 last night, but it was not a memorable match. Neither player averaged over 89 but Gurney just hit more doubles when Humphries was having a mare. Needless to say that Gurney will have to up his game if he is to progress to the evening session for the first time in 2023.
Andrew Gilding beat Matt Campbell 6-4, coming from behind, but his was not a vintage display either and while he has won six of his last ten matches, he is not in great form.
The H2H record is 5-2 to Gilding and he won their only match this year 6-4 three weeks ago. Gilding averaged 100 that day, Gurney 94.
Neither player is in their best form, Gilding is the 1.73 favourite and Gurney the 2.20 outsider. Those odds look about right. We have opposed Superchin for his first two matches, and while he hasn’t played well, he won them both. He may kick up a few gears, the game is there, but so could Gilding. No bet for me.
Sunday Austrian Darts Open Tip: No Bet
Nathan Aspinall vs. Danny Noppert
Aspinall, fresh from his Premier League night win, beat Hans Schnier 6-2 yesterday. It was a perfunctory win, Schnier was terrible on the doubles and the match was not a thing of beauty. However, Aspinall has won eight of his last ten matches now and he is looking to go one better than he did two weeks ago and finally win his first Euro Tour title.
Noppert averaged 95.8 in his 6-4 win over Chris Dobey last night. He has won six of his last ten matches and while he doesn’t seem to have the consistency to win the title, he is rarely easy to beat.
Aspinall has a 7-4 H2H record and he has won seven of their last ten meetings, but this will be their first in 2023. Aspinall is the 1.73 favourite, Noppert 2.10. The two players are very similar in terms of their stats. They have played four best of eleven leg matches and all four have had 10 or more legs.
Sunday Austrian Darts Open Tip: 1 point over 9.5 legs @ 1.91 with Ladbrokes, Boylesports
Damon Heta vs. Jonny Clayton
It was a workmanlike performance from Heta to beat Luke Woodhouse 6-4. Woodhouse missed 10 doubles, as did Heta, but it was the Aussie who got it over the line. He has won seven of his last ten matches and he has won three of his four Euro Tour second round matches.
Jonny Clayton had to work hard to beat Jelle Klassen 6-5, averaging 93.6. He has won seven of his last ten matches and he has won both of his Euro Tour third round matches in 2023.
Their H2H record is 6-3 to Heta and he has become something of a bogeyman for Clayton, winning their last five matches. They have met on the Euro Tour once with Heta winning 6-5. Their 12 month averages are nearly identical, their checkout rate the same at 42%, their % of legs won both at 55% and you can see that there is not a lot between them.
Jonny Clayton is the 1.67 favourite and Heta 2.20. Given Heta’s record against Clayton and their similar scoring power, I’d would have thought the odds would be reversed.
Sunday Austrian Darts Open Tip: 1 point Damon Heta to win @ 2.20 generally available
Dirk van Duijvenbode vs. Joe Cullen
Dirk beat Ryan Meikle 6-4 yesterday, a scoreline that flattered Meikle as Van Duijvenbode was 75% on the doubles and averaged 98.9. Hard to beat, and his run of great form continues with eight straight wins.
Cullen doesn’t have the sort of firepower of Van Duijvenbode but he can still punch. He is in good form, winning seven of his last ten matches and he averaged 102 in a 6-2 demolition of Nick Kenny yesterday.
Their H2H form is 7-3 to Dirk and he won their only match in 2023 7-6 in a players championship semi-final. Of their five best of eleven leg matches only one required more than nine legs.
Dirk van Duijvenbode is the 1.62 favourite with Cullen 2.40. Dirk has won three of his four Euro Tour third round matches in 2023 with a lowest average of 97.3. Cullen is likely to need his A game to stay with the in-form Dutchman.
Sunday Austrian Darts Open Tip: 1 point under 9.5 legs @ 1.83 with SpreadEx
Mickey Mansell vs. Josh Rock
A Northern Irish derby match between the veteran Mansell and then up and coming Josh Rock. Mansell has been quietly playing well, going under the radar, but it was hard to miss his 100.3 average in a 6-2 win over Dave Chisnall yesterday. Chizzy looked to be struggling with a hand injury, but that didn’t detract from Mansell’s performance. He has won six of his last ten matches and is playing with a good deal of consistency.
The market has Rock as the 1.33 favourite and Mansell 3.60. That is not a surprise as Rock is widely seen as a winner in waiting, Mansell a journeyman pro. Rock will need to guard against complacency. He has won eight of his last ten races and has been a model of consistency. He is very hard to oppose and has we have him backed outright, I will sit this one out a hope that he takes his chances.
Sunday Austrian Darts Open Tip: No Bet
Michael Smith vs. Mensur Suljovic
It must be said that Suljovic is an unlikely third round participant. He was dreadful against Peter Wright last night, averaging 76.5, but Wright was just as bad but worse on the doubles. It may have been one of the worst second round matches ever seen on the Euro Tour.
He is averaging 80 across his two matches so far and hasn’t faced an opponent averaging more than 88 so far. That will change with this match. Smith would average over 90 with two darts.
Slow Tactics
Suljovic will employ his dead slow tactic against Smith and Smith does not play his best at a snail’s pace. Smith was far from his best when beating Pietreczko 6-5 last night and he is likely to find this equally hard work. Suljovic will make sure the game is played at a pace that will not allow Smith to get into any sort of rhythm.
Their H2H record is 12-10 to Suljovic, which underlines how hard Smith finds playing a slow coach. They played twice last year and it was one win each.
Smith is the 1.30 favourite, Suljovic 3.75. Smith should be able to beat a player who is so badly out of form, but he will face a hostile crowd and a horrible pace of play. But at least he will know what is coming. Perhaps Suljovic and his fans will be able to drag Smith down to nearer his level and he can pick up a few legs.
It is hard to see any value in the match or side markets. No bet.
Sunday Austrian Darts Open Tip: No Bet
Michael van Gerwen vs. Simon Whitlock
MVG vs The Wizard, a match that has provided much fun in recent times. Van Gerwen laboured to a 6-4 win over John Henderson last night, despite averaging over 10 points more than the Scot. This becoming a bit of a habit for Van Gerwen, playing well, scoring great but struggling to win. He has lost four of his last seven matches and despite his good scoring he is not overly confident.
Whitlock is just able to have fun, he tries his best but he isn’t under huge pressure, or under any great expectations. He beat Martin Schindler 6-5 last night in a very good match, with Whitlock averaging 97.9. That should be a warning to Van Gerwen that this is not a cruise and collect mission.
Inconsistent Wizard
Whitlock doesn’t have much consistency these days and four of his last ten matches have seen sub 90 averages, but if he can raise his game again, we could have a surprise. In a first to six leg match, he has a puncher’s chance.
Their H2H record is 34-11 to Van Gerwen but Whitlock has won six of their last seven. MVG won their only match in 2023 an 6-2 win, ending a run of six straight defeats.
MVG is the 1.29 favourite, Whitlock 4.33. I suspect this will go one of two ways. An easy win for MVG, or a narrow win for Whitlock. A narrow win for the outsider pays better and let’s face it, their recent H2H form tells us that Whitlock has a realistic chance. The last time they met on the Euro Tour, Whitlock won 6-5 last September.
Sunday Austrian Darts Open Tip: 0.5 point Simon Whitlock to win 6-5 @ 11.00 with Betfred, Betfair, BET365
Rob Cross vs. Ryan Searle
Searle looked better than his 88.2 average against Barney suggests. His 6-5 win over RVB was marked by both players being rubbish on the outer ring, Searle missing 18 doubles. He was lucky that Barney missed 14. He has not been playing much and he looked rusty above anything else.
Cross did a professional job against Maik Kuivenhoven who only averaged 73.8. It would have been easy for Cross to switch off but he kept his concentration and ended up the 6-2 winner and averaged 95.7.
Their H2H record is 6-2 to Cross, but Searle has won their last two. They have only ever played one best of eleven leg match and that was on the remote home tour in 2020.
Searle is not a Euro Tour specialist and is performance yesterday suggests that he could struggle here. Cross is the 1.62 favourite, Searle 2.30. I’ll try Cross on the handicap.
