The 2026 Betfred World Matchplay semi-finals take place on Saturday night so check out Chris Hammer's match-by-match predictions, best bets and a suggested acca.
World Matchplay: Saturday July 25
- TV Coverage: Sky Sports, 1900 BST
- Format: Semi-finals, best of 31 legs
SL Double: 1pt Gerwyn Price (-2.5 legs) & Luke Littler (-8.5 legs) both to win and hit most 180s at 5/1 with Sky Bet
Gerwyn Price v Gian van Veen
- Three-Dart Average (2026): 99.36 - 95.79
- 180s per leg (2026): 0.32 - 0.27
- Checkout Percentage (2026): 43.04% - 40.26%
- Titles won in 2026 (TV titles in brackets): 2 (0) - 0 (0)
SELECTION: 2pts Price to win and hit most 180s at evens (Sky Bet)
It's great to see Gerwyn Price getting back to his brilliant best this week after a difficult season for him and on Friday night he upped his levels further to beat Ross Smith 16-12 with an average of 102.
The Iceman, who headed to Blackpool with question marks over his motivation, has been looking more and more confident throughout the week and if he can find another gear tonight then I expect him to be battling it out with Luke Littler for the title on Sunday.
Even after his win over Smith, he stated his belief that he could potentially contend with Littler over the longer format, saying: "I think there's a lot of players that can get to that [Littler's] level. Is there anyone who can do it as long as him? I think I can and I think there's a couple of players, but he's ruthless at the minute - these 109, 110 averages just look so easy for him."
Obviously he has to get past Gian van Veen first but the young Dutchman has reached this stage without really playing anywhere near where he wants to be.
Van Veen averaged just 93.04 against James Wade and admitted he was fortunate to catch the Machine on a rare off night in Blackpool.
He's also only hit nine 180s throughout the tournament (0.13 per leg) compared to Price's 21 (0.33 per leg) so I'm backing the Welshman to hit more maximums tonight in a victory.
Scoreline Prediction: 17-12
Luke Littler v Dirk van Duijvenbode
- Three-Dart Average (2026): 101.00 - 96.03
- 180s per leg (2026): 0.43 - 0.35
- Checkout Percentage (2026): 42.82% - 36.39%
- Titles won in 2026 (TV titles in brackets): 4 (3) - 0 (0)
SELECTION: 2pts Luke Littler (-4.5) to hit more 180s than Dirk van Duijvenbode at evens (Sky Bet)
The longer the format, the harder it is to imagine Luke Littler getting beat.
When the relentless world number one thrashed Josh Rock 16-7 in the previous round, it was the 27th time in a row that he'd won a match lasting over 20 legs - a run dating back to the very start of his senior PDC career. The only time he's lost a match of this length was the 2024 World Championship final to Luke Humphries!
No disrespect to Dirk van Duijvenbode, but he ain't gonna stop this streak. In fact, he might do well to even take this one to 20 legs! OK, that's slightly disrespectful but he's been disrespectful to a fine journalist in Blackpool this week so I make no apologies.
To be fair to Van Duijvenbode, he's played well above himself to get this far and has knocked out Chris Dobey, Michael van Gerwen and then Gary Anderson with one of his finest ever performances, averaging 101.49.
He threw 13 180s to underline his maximum hitting power but it's nothing compared to Littler's this week.
The Nuke has hit 38 so far (0.66 per leg) compared to van Duijvenbode's 27 (0.34 per leg) so I reckon he should overcome a deficit of -4.5 in the 180 handicap market.
Scoreline prediction: 17-6
World Matchplay Darts: Draw Bracket
ROUND ONE
- (1) Luke Littler 10-6 Niko Springer
- (16) Nathan Aspinall 10-5 Joe Cullen
- (8) Josh Rock 10-4 Luke Woodhouse
- (9) Stephen Bunting 13-12 Niels Zonneveld
- (4) Michael van Gerwen 10-6 Andrew Gilding
- (13) Chris Dobey 11-13 Dirk van Duijvenbode
- (5) Jonny Clayton 10-7 Damon Heta
- (12) Gary Anderson 10-2 Ryan Joyce
- (2) Luke Humphries 7-10 Cameron Menzies
- (15) Ross Smith 10-6 Kevin Doets
- (7) Gerwyn Price 11-9 Martin Schindler
- (10) Danny Noppert 3-10 Rob Cross
- (3) Gian van Veen 10-6 Krzysztof Ratajski
- (14) Wessel Nijman 10-5 Dave Chisnall
- (6) James Wade 10-7 Jermaine Wattimena
- (11) Ryan Searle 10-6 William O’Connor
ROUND TWO
- (1) Luke Littler 11-8 Nathan Aspinall (16)
- (8) Josh Rock 11-6 Stephen Bunting (9)
- (4) Michael van Gerwen 12-14 Dirk van Duijvenbode
- (5) Jonny Clayton 7-11 Gary Anderson (12)
- Cameron Menzies v W/O Ross Smith (15) (Cameron Menzies withdrew due to illness)
- (7) Gerwyn Price 11-5 Rob Cross
- (3) Gian van Veen 14-12 Wessel Nijman (14)
- (6) James Wade 11-8 Ryan Searle (11)
QUARTER-FINALS
- (1) Luke Littler 16-7 Josh Rock (8)
- Dirk van Duijvenbode 16-13 Gary Anderson (12)
- (15) Ross Smith 12-16 Gerwyn Price (7)
- (3) Gian van Veen 16-12 James Wade (6)
World Matchplay Darts: Daily Schedule
- Click here for Sky Bet odds
- * Each game must be won by two clear legs, with up to a maximum of five additional legs being played before the sixth additional leg is sudden-death
Saturday July 18 (1900 BST)
First Round (best of 19 legs)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
- Josh Rock 10-4 Luke Woodhouse
- Stephen Bunting 13-12 Niels Zonneveld
- Luke Littler 10-6 Niko Springer
- Nathan Aspinall 10-5 Joe Cullen
Sunday July 19
Morning Session (1300 BST)
First Round (best of 19 legs)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
- Dirk van Duijvenbode 13-11 Chris Dobey
- Gary Anderson 10-2 Ryan Joyce
- Michael van Gerwen 10-6 Andrew Gilding
- Jonny Clayton 10-7 Damon Heta
Evening Session (1900 BST)
First Round (best of 19 legs)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
- Ryan Searle 10-6 William O’Connor
- James Wade 10-7 Jermaine Wattimena
- Gian van Veen 10-6 Krzysztof Ratajski
- Wessel Nijman 10-5 Dave Chisnall
Monday July 20 (1900 BST)
First Round (best of 19 legs)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
- Ross Smith 10-6 Kevin Doets
- Gerwyn Price 11-9 Martin Schindler
- Cameron Menzies 10-7 Luke Humphries
- Rob Cross 10-3 Danny Noppert
Tuesday July 21 (1900 BST)
Second Round (best of 21 legs)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
- Gary Anderson 11-7 Jonny Clayton
- Dirk van Duijvenbode 14-12 Michael van Gerwen
- Luke Littler 11-8 Nathan Aspinall
- Josh Rock 11-6 Stephen Bunting
Wednesday July 22 (1900 BST)T)
Second Round (best of 21 legs)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
- Ross Smith w/o (Cameron Menzies withdrew due to illness)
- Gian van Veen 14-12 Wessel Nijman
- Gerwyn Price 11-5 Rob Cross
- James Wade 11-8 Ryan Searle
Thursday July 24 (1900 BST)
Quarter-Finals (Best of 31 legs)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
- Dirk van Duijvenbode 16-13 Gary Anderson
- Luke Littler 16-7 Josh Rock
Friday July 24 (1900 BST)
Quarter-Finals (Best of 31 legs)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
- Ross Smith 12-16 Gerwyn Price
- Gian van Veen 16-13 James Wade
Saturday July 25 (1900 BST)
Semi-Finals (best of 33 legs)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
- Winner QF 1 v Winner QF 2
- Winner QF 3 v Winner QF 4
Sunday July 26 (2030 BST)
Final (best of 35 legs)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
- Winner SF 1 v Winner SF 2
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