2026 Czech Darts Open R2 Preview & Tips – JP
2026 Czech Darts Open R2 Preview
James Punt landed three winners last night and was two missed Keane Barry doubles away from a fourth at 12.00. Fine margins. Check out his 2026 Czech Darts Open R2 evening preview and tips below.
R1 Reflections
It was a small -0.1 point loss on day one. Keane Barry missing two darts to win 6-3 was the difference between a very good day and a frustrating one. But that’s darts, and one day, they will go in.
Today is the all-important round two. The seeded players join the action and we find out who is hot and who is not.
Jermaine Wattimena vs. Krzysztof Ratajski
The last time these two met was in the final of ET10, which Ratajski won 8-6. Their overall H2H record is 9-3 to Ratajski and he has won nine of their last ten matches.
Ratajski is in decent form, winning seven of his last ten matches, Wattimena has won eight of his last ten.
The Polish Eagle is 1.91, Wattimena 2.00. The odds look about right and it is a no bet for me.
2026 Czech Darts Open R2 Tip: No bet
Ryan Seale vs. William O’Connor
Two players who don’t like second round matches. Searle has lost four of his ten second round matches in 2026 and in the last twenty four Euro Tours, he has exited at this stage nine times, but at least he has won his last four in a row. Searle has won six of his last ten matches and is playing well, with just a couple of below par matches.
O’Connor has also won six of his last ten matches. Of more interest is that he is a specialist round two loser. He has played eight second round matches in 2026 and lost six, and in 2025 he lost five from six
Their H2H record is 8-3 to Searle. They have only met on the Euro Tour once, with Searle winning that 6-3. Their most recent meeting was at the World Matchplay, which Searle won 10-6.
Searle is the 1.58 favourite, O’Connor. In their nine best of eleven leg matches, Searle has covered a -1.5 leg handicap six times and won four of them 6-3.
2026 Czech Darts Open R2 Tip: 1 point Searle to win -1.5 legs @ 1.95 with Betfred
2026 Czech Darts Open R2 Tip: 0.5 point Searle to win 6-3 @ 6.00 generally available
Danny Noppert vs. Kevin Doets
Doets put last weekend’s nightmare behind him to beat Ricky Evans 6-2, and he hit a ton average. He has won seven of his last ten matches but hasn’t been playing with much consistency. He has been winning a lot of matches while not playing well, which is a useful ability.
Noppert has won six of his last ten matches and hasn’t been his usual consistent self. That said, he made last weekend’s semi-final while playing ordinary darts.
Neither player is at their best which is a bit off-putting. Their H2H record is 4-3 to Noppert and this will be their first match on stage. I am happy to leave this one alone. No bet.
2026 Czech Darts Open R2 Tip: No Bet
Gary Anderson vs. Cameron Menzies
An all-Scottish affair and a match between two World Cup teammates. Menzies will be in awe of his hero and their H2H record is 5-2 to Anderson. However, Menzies has won their last two, both 6-3. Five of their matches have been in the best of eleven leg format and four saw under 9.5 legs.
Anderson has won seven of his last ten matches and started last week’s event in fine form, hitting averages of 105, 97 and 101, before he ran out of juice on Sunday evening with an 89 and a 90. He’s too old for a four match day, on stage.
Menzies has won seven of his last ten matches and playing with his usual mix of performances. Everything from a 105 to a 79.
Anderson is the 1.44 favourite, Menzies 2.88. I am tempted to go for Menzies to win outright, but I am going to have two bets and spread the risk a little.
2026 Czech Darts Open R2 Tip: 1 point under 9.5 legs @ 1.80 with SpreadEx
2026 Czech Darts Open R2 Tip: 0.5 point Menzies to win 6-3 @ 11.00 generally available
Chris Dobey vs. Keane Barry
Barry let us down for our the correct score bet last night, but he did get a win over the in-form Rob Cross. It was a crap match with two sub 90 averages. Barry has won six of his ten matches and had been playing some good stuff, but his last three matches have seen averages of 92, 90 and 90. That is very beatable.
Chris Dobey reached, and lost, another quarter final last weekend. He is the new Danny Noppert. He has lost his last six quarter finals in a row in all competitions, and ten in 2026. He too has won six of his last ten matches but has been playing at a better level than Barry.
Their H2H record is 5-1 to Dobey, with four matches being under 9.5 legs and two over. Dobey is the 1.36 favourite and he is never good value at those sort of odds. Their last match was a 6-5 win for Dobey, but Barry played close to his A game then and he has been off that in his last three.
Under 9.5 legs was going to be the bet, but at just 1.67, there is no great value there. No bet.
2026 Czech Darts Open R2 Tip: No Bet
Ross Smith vs. Stephen Burton
Burton got only his second Euro Tour win of his career yesterday, beating Joe Cullen 6-3. Cullen seems to have gone into one of his funks and Burton was hardly brilliant with a 91.12 average. Burton has never won a second round Euro Tour match.
Ross Smith has as many Euro Tour titles in 2026 as Burton has won matches in his career. Smith is the 1.30 favourite, with Burton 4.00. Their H2H record is 2-2. Burton is no more than a journeyman pro, but he has beaten a lot of big names in what has been a long career on the fringes of the game.
Perhaps a more realistic guide is that Smith played Burton twice in 2025, and won both matches 6-0. This will be their first stage match. The odds for another 6-0 win for Smudger? 19.00 and I have to have some of that.
2026 Czech Darts Open R2 Tip: 0.5 point Ross Smith to win 6-0 @ 19.00 with Betfred
Nathan Aspinall vs. Andrew Gilding
The first thing to look at here is the H2H record. Gilding is kryptonite to some players. Aspinall is immune to Gilding’s weird ways and is 10-3 up, winning their last six in a row, including a 6-4 win in ET4 earlier this season. They have met three times on the Euro Tour and all ended 6-4, twice for Aspinall.
Aspinall is playing well, consistently in the mid to high 90s. He has won six of his last ten matches. Gilding has won five of his last ten matches and isn’t at his best, with six sub 91 averages. Of their ten best of eleven leg matches, seven have seen over 9.5 legs. Aspinall does usually win, but he rarely finds it easy against Gilding.
2026 Czech Darts Open R2 Tip: 1 point over 9.5 legs @ 2.10 with Boylesports, Betfair, Livescorebet
2026 Czech Darts Open R2 Tip: 0.5 point Aspinall to win 6-4 @ 6.00 with SpreadEx, Betfair, Skybet
Wessell Nijman vs. Martin Schindler
Nijman has won seven of his last ten matches, but lost three of his last five and he looked off his game in his last three, with averages of 90, 87 and 89. Even going back a bit further and Nijman has been putting in some under par performances, and not like in a golfing sense. I mean, he hasn’t won a title since June!
Schindler has been struggling to find his form for longer than that, and there wasn’t much sign of it in his 6-4 win over Rob Owen last night. It was an 89.50 average but at least he was better on his doubles, checking out at 46%.
He is having problems with his line as well, straying into the 5 bed too often. That said, in his last ten matches, Schindler has hit a couple of ton plus averages, a 99 and a 98, so his A game is still there.
Their H2H record is 5-2 to Nijman and the Dutchman is the 1.44 favourite. However, I am going for the outsider here. Schindler won their last match, a 6-5 win in PC15 back in May.
