2024 WC Darts Friday Night Preview & Tips – JP
2024 WC Darts Friday Night Preview & Tips
One bet, one winner today and that made it two in a row. James Punt is hoping to keep that run going at the Ally Pally this evening. Check out his 2024 WC Darts Friday Night match previews and tips below.
Dimitri van den Bergh vs. Florian Hempel
This is a repeat of their 2022 Championship second round match which saw a surprise 3-1 win for Hempel.
Van den Bergh usually plays better on stage than he does on the floor and his record at Ally Pally is played 23 and won 15. He has reached two quarter finals and a semi-final. Dimitri has won six of his eight second round matches.
His 2023 season started well with a World Championship semi-final and a UK Open semi-final but since then, it has been very quiet. He won one match at the Matchplay and two at the recent Players Championship finals but lost in the first round at the European Championship and Grand Prix.
Dimi Not Scoring Well
Van den Bergh’s most recent form sees just four wins from his last ten matches and his scoring has been on the low side for a while. He did get two wins at the Players Championship finals, beating Jim Williams and Gary Anderson, before losing to James Wade. They were OK performances but nothing outstanding.
Very nearly 40% of his last 50 matches have seen sub 90 averages which is poor for a top player. However, you have to expect him to raise his game in front of a crowd on TV.
Hempel beat Dylan Slevin 3-1 in the first round meaning that he has won six of his last ten matches and he is playing decent stuff. I would expect him to be able to at least give Van den Bergh a game.
H2H
Their H2H record is 3-1 to Van den Bergh. Hempel’s only win came here two years ago. The other three were easy wins for Dimitri. Their previous second round match here two years ago saw Van den Bergh average 101 but he was out finished by Hampel who checked out at 75%.
It is hard to have too much faith in a player who has lost six of their last ten matches, but Van den Bergh is normally a different player on stage and he loves playing at Ally Pally.
15 of his 23 games here have seen 95+ averages, as have all of his second round matches, so I expect a good performance, and probably the win. He has won half his opening matches 3-1 and Hempel looks good enough to get a set here.
2024 WC Darts Friday Night Tip: 0.5 point Van den Bergh to win 3-1 @ 4.00 with Fitzdares
Martin Schindler vs. Jermaine Wattimena
Wattimena beat a disappointing Fallon Sherrock 3-1 in the first round. He lost the first set but after that, Sherrock went missing on the doubles.
A win is a win and he has reached his fifth fourth round match. He won two of the last four. His recent form sees six wins from his last ten and I have seen him play worse.
Martin Schindler has lost six of his last ten matches and he is very hard to pin down. He is a heavy scorer but lacks sufficient consistency to win titles. He took Michael Smith to a deciding set in last year’s third round and it was the first time he had got beyond the first round. He has reached two major quarter finals this year, but a first title of any sort remains elusive.
Their H2H record is 6-3 to Schindler. Wattimena won their only match this season.
Schindler is the 1.57 favourite and Wattimena the 2.60 outsider. Schindler looks poor value given his recent form and I never back Wattimena, so it’s a no bet match for me.
2024 WC Darts Friday Night Tip: No Bet
Raymond van Barneveld vs. Radek Szaganski
Szaganski won his first ever match at Ally Pally with a 3-2 win over Marko Kantele. It was not a match of great quality and Szaganski averaged just 82. He is a lot better than that and I imagine just being on the big stage was the limiting factor.
Raymond van Barneveld has played a few more games on this stage than Szaganski, and stage fright is not going to be a problem for him.
Szaganski hasn’t played many matches on TV and the only one he played well in, he lost 0-6 to Luke Humphries. The rest have been sub 90 averages. He has won six of his last ten matches, but clearly, at this stage of his career, he is more comfortable on the floor.
RVB has won just five of his last ten matches but he is playing quite well with few sub 90 averages. He looks like he should win this. They have met twice in 2023 and Barney won both, 6-2 and 6-5.
Barney is the 1.50 favourite but I think he can cover a bit of a handicap.
2024 WC Darts Friday Night Tip: 1 point Raymond van Barneveld -1.5 sets to win @ 1.95 with Ladbrokes
Chris Dobey vs. William O’Connor
It was a given that O’Connor would beat Bhav Patel 3-0 in the first round and he did, but at least he did it properly. He averaged 98 and didn’t drop his level against a weaker opponent, as so often is the case.
O’Connor has played five second round matches at Ally Pally and he has won two. He has lost six of his last ten matches and his averages have been over 90 in all but one, and six have been 94+.
Chris Dobey has won five of his last ten matches and has played some very good darts. He isn’t quite in his best form but there are some big scores coming through, he’s just lacking a bit of consistency.
He made the quarter finals here last year, won the Masters, played in the Premier League and reached a further three major semi-finals. A good year financially. Dobey has plenty of Ally Pally experience and has played seven last 64 matches and won six.
Dobey Edges H2H
Their H2H record is close, 5-4 to Dobey. They have played one match on TV and O’Connor won it 6-5 back in 2021. They have played three times in 2023, with Dobey winning two, O’Connor the last one, another 6-5 back in October.
Given his better record here, you have to make Dobey favourite to win it, but O’Connor is playing well enough to have some say in the match. Dobey is the 1.44 favourite but there is money for O’Connor who is a 3.10 shot.
Three of Dobey’s last 64 round matches have ended with him winning 3-2. Something similar tonight?
