Betfred World Matchplay day six predictions and darts betting tips: Smudger to impress once more

Where to watch day six of the Betfred World Matchplay

Live on Sky Sports Action & Main event, from 7pm Thursday

Best bets

Ross Smith -2.5 legs
2pts 10-11 Hills

Dimitri Van den Bergh to score the highest checkout
1pt 13-10 Hills

Betfred World Matchplay day six predictions

The first two quarter-final of the World Matchplay are staged on Thursday night at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool. The matches jump from best of 21 legs in the second round to best of 31 in the last eight so expect some mammoth clashes where staying power will come to the fore.

Ross Smith v James Wade 

Ross Smith has been one of the standout performers at this year’s World Matchplay and he blew away number four seed Gerwyn Price in the second round with his scoring.

Smudger hit 13 maximums in just 20 legs of that clash against the Iceman and he also impressed against Josh Rock in his opener, averaging 99.15 in a 10-4 win.

He faces James Wade in this quarter-final and the Machine may struggle to live with his younger opponent.

Wade has been a staple of the PDC for the last 20 years but his powers may be on the wane and he has dropped from fourth on the PDC Order of Merit to 22nd in under three years.

The 41-year-old managed to get the better of an injured Nathan Aspinall in the last round but Smith is a different prospect and Wade has not gone beyond the quarters of this tournament since 2015.

Take Smith’s scoring power to be key and back him to overcome a 2.5 leg deficit on the handicap.

Luke Humphries v Dimitri Van den Bergh 

Luke Humphries has been dominant in Blackpool this year, averaging at least 102 in a pair of victories over Ricardo Pietreczko and Stephen Bunting.

Now the world champion faces Dimitri Van den Bergh, who has also impressed in wins over Martin Schindler and Jonny Clayton.

Humphries’ scoring power means that his opponents often have to rely on big checkouts to keep tabs with him and as a result his opposite number has had the highest checkout in both games at this tournament.

Dancing Dimi has also recorded the highest checkout in his two games at the tournament and in the last meeting between these two in March.

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