The third day of action at the 2024 PDC World Darts Championship gets underway on Sunday and SportsLens have previewed every match-up plus the order of play.
PDC World Darts Championship Day 3 Preview
We’ll have Day 3 action from the 2024 PDC World Darts Championship to look forward to starting on Sunday at midday, featuring a number of stars including tournament favourite and three-time major champion Luke Humphries.
12:45pm: Ricky Evans vs Simon Adams (Round One)
Ricky Evans opens proceedings on Day 2 against Simon Adams in the first round. The best new UK betting sites have priced Evans as the huge 1/7 favourite at Alexandra Palace, having earned over £500,000 in career prize money.
Adams plays his darts on the MODUS Super Series circuit and gained qualification for the tournament through the African qualifiers. As the bookies have predicted, he’s likely to struggle to keep up with his opponent.
Evans is a veteran of the World Championship, making his ninth appearance this year. He’s made it to at least the second round on each of his last four tries and as long as there’s air conditioning inside the arena he should breeze past Adams.
1:30pm: Jim Williams vs Norman Madhoo (Round One)
In the second game of the day, Jim Williams takes on Norman Madhoo. Williams made the last 32 of the World Championship last year and is another extremely short favourite at 1/33, so finding a betting angle for this match is almost impossible.
Madhoo, a 59-year-old from Georgetown, made it to the last 48 of the World Championship in 2004. He plays on the CDLC Tour but unfortunately doesn’t stand much of a chance of making it through – according to oddsmakers anyways.
Williams has become a household name within the PDC and should ease into the second round.
2:15pm: Matt Campbell vs Lourence Ilagan (Round One)
Matt Campbell vs Lourence Ilagan is our first close match-up of the day. Campbell, a 34-year-old from Canada, has been knocked out in the first round in each of the last four years but enters this clash as the 1/2 favourite.
He’s had some decent showings in TV majors too, reaching the last 64 of the UK Open in 2023 alongside the last 16 of the World Series of Darts Finals and Players Championship Finals in 2022.
Ilagan has been knocked out of the second round on two occasions in 2013 and 2023, and arrives with every chance of beating Campbell. The Filipino has played mostly on the Asian Tour this year and made the last 16 of the World Cup in 2023.
Campbell is preferred due to his better experience at a younger age, especially regularly playing in England, but this one could go either way.
3:00pm: Joe Cullen vs Darren Penhall (Round Two)
Joe Cullen meets Darren Penhall in the second round of the World Championship, where ‘The Rockstar’ is the 1/4 favourite to progress through. Cullen hasn’t had an ideal year but semi-final appearances in the World Grand Prix and World Matchplay are huge bonuses.
Cullen can compete with the best in the world when he’s on form. He was unlucky to meet eventual winner Michael Smith in the fourth round last year which saw him exit the tournament, but his record at Alexandra Palace leaves much to be desired overall.
Darren Penhall played impressively to upset Jules van Dongen in the first round but he comes up against a different kettle of fish on Sunday afternoon, where Cullen should stamp his place in the third round.
7:15pm: Dylan Slevin vs Florian Hempe (Round One)
The evening session begins with Dylan Slevin taking on Florian Hempe, where the latter is a slight favourite. It’s close in the betting and should be an entertaining clash to kick-off the action after dark.
Slevin is making his tournament debut after a year on the Development Tour, where he also made appearances at various Players Championship events. The 21-year-old Irishman is full of potential and has won over £46,000 in his early career.
Florian Hempe has won almost triple that sum across his career and the 33-year-old will be confident of getting the job done. He made the last 32 here two years ago and is vastly more experienced than his opponent with previous major outings in the tank.
The German is a rightful favourite in this one but Slevin won’t be a pushover and has a decent chance of pulling an upset off.
8:00pm: Niels Zonneveld vs Darren Webster (Round One)
Despite holding the edge in experience and age, Darren Webster finds himself as the 5/2 underdog against 1/3 favourite Niels Zonneveld in the first round. The former, 55, has earned over £650,000 in prize money across his career including two World Championship quarter-final finishes in 2007 and 2018.
Webster qualified at the end of November after a year playing on the Players Championship circuit and European Tour qualifiers. He’s past his best but with a vocal crowd behind him, it could spur him on to upset his opponent.
Zonneveld, 25, has been knocked out of the first round in 2021 and 2023 but has a decent chance of progressing this time around. He made the last 16 of the Players Championship Finals earlier this year and has enjoyed a solid year, beating some big names.
The bookies probably have this one right, but Webster won’t go down without a fight and it should be a great match-up.
8:45pm: Jermaine Wattimena vs Fallon Sherrock (Round One)
The ‘Queen of the Palace’ returns to our screens on Sunday night as Fallon Sherrock takes on Jermaine Wattimena for a spot in the second round of the World Championship.
Sherrock will undoubtedly have the crowd on her side throughout but enters as the 2/1 underdog against the 1/3 Dutch favourite. Wattimena made the last 32 here in 2018, 2019 and 2021.
He also has a greater portfolio of major experience, but Sherrock is known for beating the odds. In 2019, she became the first female player to win a match at the worlds before being knocked out in the third round by Chris Dobey.
Sherrock reached the last 32 here in 2020 but her preparation hasn’t been ideal, still without a Tour Card and playing in the Women’s Series and MODUS Super Series throughout the year. If Wattimena remains mentally resilient, he should have no problem progressing through.
9:30pm: Luke Humphries vs Lee Evans (Round Two)
Tournament favourite Luke Humphries begins his World Championship campaign against Lee Evans in the second round. Humphries’ class goes without saying after a stunning 2023, winning three TV major titles in the Grand Prix, Grand Slam and Players Championship Finals.
Evans dealt with Sandro Eric Sosing in impressive fashion to reach the second round, completing the match treble with a 3-0 win. Unfortunately for him though, this is likely where his participation at Alexandra Palace comes to an end.
Humphries has three quarter-final finishes in this tournament to date and this could be the year he breaks the seal. Priced at 1/14 to win the match, the 28-year-old is set for a routine outing to reach the third round.
PDC World Darts Championship Day 3 Order Of Play
- 12:45 – Ricky Evans vs Simon Adams
- 13:30 – Jim Williams vs Norman Madhoo
- 14:15 – Matt Campbell vs Lourence Ilagan
- 15:00 – Joe Cullen vs Darren Penhall
- 19:15 – Dylan Slevin vs Florian Hempe
- 20:00 – Niels Zonneveld vs Darren Webster
- 20:45 – Jermaine Wattimena vs Fallon Sherrock
- 21:30 – Luke Humphries vs Lee Evans
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