Today's PDC World Darts Championship predictions: Betting tips, acca, order of play and TV time for Wednesday January 1

World Championship: Day 14 preview

SL Acca: 1pt MVG (-1.5), Bunting (-2.5) & Littler (-2.5) all to win at 15/2 with Paddy Power

Scroll down for match-by-match tips, stats and scoreline predictions

Evening Session (1900 GMT)

• TV Coverage: Sky Sports
• Format: Quarter-finals, best of nine sets

Peter Wright (5/4) v Stephen Bunting (4/7)

• Three-dart average (2024): 92.16 - 96.81
• 180s per leg (2024): 0.22 - 0.32
• Checkout % (2024): 37.45% - 41.25%

All my predictions on Sunday were bizarrely going to plan (for a change) until Peter Wright shattered Luke Humphries’ dreams of back-to-back world titles.

Not to mention my own reputation as a darts expert!

Never before has a 4-0 prediction been made to look so foolish, especially after I’d even acknowledged that Snakebite’s ‘mind games’ may have worked in terms of getting Humphries embroiled in some uncharacteristic verbal sparring.

I didn’t think it would impact Cool Hand on the dartboard, but on reflection I think some of his comments such as ‘I’m one world title away from matching his career’ possibly put a bit too much pressure on himself.

Humphries has previously said he’s not the type who wants animosity and heated rivalries in his career so all that background distraction with Wright in the media can’t have helped.

That’s not taking anything away from Wright because he did finish insanely well by pinning 70% of his doubles. But if Humphries was at his cool, calm and composed best, then Snakebite wouldn’t have had all those chances.

So why is mulling over the defending champion’s unfortunate downfall relevant to this match?

Well, one of Humphries’ closest friends in the sport happens to be Stephen Bunting, who gave quite a strange press conference following his demolition job of Luke Woodhouse on Monday.

Every time he was asked a question about Wright’s mind games and Snakebite’s quip that he has more fans than the Bullet, he gave very short, abrupt answers. It’s like he didn’t really want to be drawn on any of it, but at the same time you could sense some kind of frosty feelings under the surface.

Maybe he’d just learned from Humphries not to get involved and just stay focused on producing his own best game on New Year’s Day – and if he does, I fancy him to win fairly handsomely.

Bunting has been ultra consistent all season and although he didn’t add more titles to the Masters crown he picked up back in February, he did reach a six Pro Tour finals and boasts one of the highest averages across 2024.

You know you’ll pretty much always get an impressive level from Bunting whereas we can’t say the same about Wright.

As memorable as Sunday night was for the two-time world champion, was that as good as it’s going to get at this stage of his career?

He’s not going to hit 70% of his doubles again – especially in a best-of-nine sets match – and Bunting’s army of support won’t make life easy.

Before the tournament began, I backed Bunting to reach the quarter-finals but didn’t think he’d go any further because I expected Humphries to be here.

And while Luke Littler is a very fair title favourite, I just feel we’ve seen enough signs of vulnerability from him in previous matches that could be pounced upon by a player of Bunting’s calibre should they meet in the semi-finals.

There is pressure building too so Bunting is perhaps worth a small flutter to get his hands on that trophy.

Predicted scoreline: 2-5

SELECTIONS: 1pt Stephen Bunting to win the world title at 10/1 (General) & 1pt Stephen Bunting (-2.5 sets) to beat Peter Wright at 2/1 (Unibet)

• CLICK HERE to bet on Wright v Bunting with Sky Bet
• CLICK HERE to back Bunting to win the title with Sky Bet
• CLICK HERE to back Bunting (-2.5 sets) to win the match with Sky Bet

Luke Littler (1/6) v Nathan Aspinall (7/2)

• Three-dart average (2024): 99.28 - 94.41
• 180s per leg (2024): 0.40 - 0.26
• Checkout % (2024): 41.40% - 36.51%

It’s remarkable that Luke Littler’s run to the World Championship quarter-finals has seemed nervy and relatively unconvincing despite the fact he’s averaged almost 100 and dropped just five sets in three matches.

He’s achieved two 100+ match averages – with one of them helped by that astounding world record set average of 141 – and his lowest was still a pretty impressive 97, while he’s streaks clean in the race to win the Ballon d’Art for most 180s.

For anyone else, this would be regarded as ominous. But because Littler’s debut season has been so spectacular, it feels like there’s some cause for concern when he’s ‘just’ very good.

No player is immune from a shock defeat, let alone being given a scare by someone so clinical on their doubles like Ryan Joyce, who played extremely well in a 4-3 defeat.

We forget he’s just 17 and the weight of expectation on his shoulders to win the world title – especially after Luke Humphries got knocked out – must be feeling very heavy despite how calmly he deals with the media away from the oche.

A clash with his good friend Nathan Aspinall is probably exactly what he needs to settle him down up on that Ally Pally stage and reach those silly levels we’ve seen so many times before.

WIN: LUKE LITTLER DARTS AND SIGNED FLIGHTS

When it comes to Aspinall, he’ll be hoping he can play his part in a show-stopping contest that would all but seal his participation in the Premier League.

The Stockport ace says he talks about that tournament as much as he does because he feels that’s where he belongs – and I doubt anyone would disagree, apart from the social media trolls that he really ought to ignore.

He’s the ultimate crowd pleaser but unlike many other fan favourites who have failed to reach his heights – such as Ricky Evans – he also possesses that genuine desire to smash his opponents on the dartboard.

I asked him about how difficult it is to juggle being an entertainer with trying to be a ‘winner’ and he admitted it was tough, but ultimately you do need both to make a really good living in this sport.

The Asp has clearly done a tremendous job of that and the way he’s battled so hard to beat dartitis and fight to stay towards the top of the rankings over the past couple of seasons is testament to his dedication to the sport.

But the one thing I can never understand about Aspinall is that he frequently complains about being ‘written off’ yet at the same time openly admits he loves being the underdog.

On this occasion he definitely can’t have any complaints about being the outsider.

Aspinall has lost seven of his eight meetings with Littler, including their first back in January when he couldn’t help but celebrate the 17-year-old’s first PDC nine-darter at the Bahrain Darts Masters.

These are examples of how Aspinall’s presence on stage could be the key in bringing the best out of Littler and helps him combine the flashes of brilliance we have seen with that lengthy consistency that’s been lacking.

I said at the start of the tournament I’d commit a small flutter on there being nine-darters in his matches, and while he’s not yet been able to get a record-breaking fifth of the season, he’s come agonisingly close and kicks off so many legs with maximums.

You always feel it’s more possible with him than anyone else, while his opponent’s rate at hitting 180s means it wouldn’t be a shock if Aspinall were the player to do it.

Predicted scoreline: 5-2

SELECTION: 0.5pts nine-dart finish in Littler v Aspinall at 14/1 (bet365)

• CLICK HERE to bet on Littler v Aspinall with Sky Bet
• CLICK HERE to back the selection with Sky Bet

Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)

• TV Coverage: Sky Sports
• Format: Quarter-finals, best of nine sets

Chris Dobey (5/6) v Gerwyn Price (5/6)

• Three-dart average (2024): 97.41 - 96.98
• 180s per leg (2024): 0.34 - 0.30
• Checkout % (2024): 38.46% - 40.35%

This is without a shadow of a doubt the toughest of the four quarter-finals to call and the odds also reflect this.

The bookies can’t definitively decide who should be favourite and unsurprisingly, I’m struggling too.

Chris Dobey was one of my outsiders for the title before the World Championship began and had I been told he’d be facing Gerwyn Price in the quarter-finals back then, I’d have been fairly confident about Hollywood’s chances.

However, the Iceman really seems to be getting some of his old blockbusting aura back – particularly at the start of matches – and if his consistency follows the same trajectory as his growing confidence, then he could well end up contending for his second world title.

Price’s tournament average is only 92.29 - which is on a par with the past few months of the season – due to his levels tailing off towards the end of his victories, but his blistering starts ultimately gave Joe Cullen and Jonny Clayton too much to do and you have to wonder if all that effort to claw your way back takes its toll in those final moments.

Considering the Welshman’s troubles and loss of form he’s endured over the past 12 months, the Ally Pally crowd have been extremely kind to him over his past few matches compared to when he was at the height of his successful pantomime villain era.

It shows how fickle sports fans can be, doesn’t it? Build someone up on their way to the top, then bring them down until they are vulnerable, fallen heroes that need lifting up again!

In Price’s case, I suppose he was initially lifted towards the top by a chorus of boos anyway, before reaching the pinnacle at a silent Ally Pally in Covid year.

The crowd did end up getting too much for him on this stage a couple of years ago when the ear defenders famously came out during a shock defeat to Gabriel Clemens but I doubt he’ll go through anything like that again even though Dobey will have the lion’s share of support on New Year’s Day.

The popular Bedlington ace is averaging 96.65 so far while his 180 per leg rate of 0.39 is significantly higher than Price’s 0.27.

However, his finishing has been poor at 34.33% and found himself in huge trouble at 2-1 and 3-2 against Kevin Doets because of his wastefulness.

He showed superb character to come back and then finish the job and while this next challenge is a longer format match where an early deficit isn’t as fatal, he still won’t want to allow Price to get too far in front.

Price’s checkout percentage is similarly as poor as Dobey’s but if this goes to the wire it’ll come down to who handles the pressure most and we’ve seen the former world champion do that more times throughout his career.

Predicted scoreline: 4-5

• CLICK HERE to bet on Dobey v Price with Sky Bet

Michael van Gerwen (8/11) v Callan Rydz (13/8)

• Three-dart average (2024): 97.19 - 92.68
• 180s per leg (2024): 0.28 - 0.28
• Checkout % (2024): 41.01% - 37.47%

If I was asked to pick one of the remaining players that I’d most like to see lift the Sid Waddell Trophy on January 3, I’d just about go for Callan Rydz ahead of Chris Dobey.

The increasingly popular Geordie was completely off the radar when it came to world title contender talk before the World Championship began and he’s the first to admit that his last 18 months or so have been ‘shocking’, especially when it comes to major form.

Unlike several other players in this tournament, he had absolutely no complaints about being ‘written off’ and that’s because he doesn’t have an ego that needs massaging.

He even jokingly imitated Joe Cullen by pretending to get up and leave a post-match press conference when I asked him a question about not being talked about as a favourite.

Rydz is easily one of the most relatable players on the circuit for darts fans to root for. He plays with a smile on his face, wears his heart on his sleeve and has an extremely enjoyable style to play to watch.

Even Peter Wright said “I want to play like Callan Rydz” following his shock victory over Luke Humphries, while Gerwyn Price also praised him without even being prompted to do so, describing him as the player of the tournament so far.

And statistically nobody can argue with that considering he has the highest tournament average of 100, while he’s also managed an electrifying 107 in round one and a 105 that was as high as 110 when two legs away from destroying Dimitri Van den Bergh 4-0 in the third.

Now that was one way to let your darts do the talking after the Belgian called him unstable!

The way Rydz jokingly agreed with Van den Bergh once showed his self-deprecating side and he did it again when asked about the crowd’s cruel – yet weirdly supportive – chants about his hairstyle.

I’m sure I can’t be the only one who actually thinks he’s got good hair (genuinely – I don’t understand why it’s made fun of!) and there’s literally billions of men in this world who’d give their non-throwing hand to have it on their own heads. Or even their throwing hand if they don’t play darts.

But thankfully, Rydz seems to see the funny side of it anyway, because chants like that could easily cripple someone’s confidence.

He’s got so much of that right now and puts that down to a happy home life, which is sometimes an underestimated factor when we try to predict who’s going to win a match in any sport.

My heart says he can keep this momentum going, but my head unfortunately questions if he has that iron mental strength to keep those standards up over such a long format against such a formidable opponent, who will have spells of dominance.

Michael van Gerwen may well be some way short of his best, but he's still averaging 98.26 for the tournament and while he's not been consistent this season - hence why he's 'only' won four titles - he is more 'reliable' than Rydz.

He let a 2-0 lead against Jeffrey de Graaf slip before winning the next six legs in succession to wrap up a 4-2 victory with an average of 101.98, so Rydz will have to keep his cool and pounce when MVG’s levels drop.

Of course, Scott Williams proved it's very possible for an underdog to stun the three-time champion over this longer format when running out a 5-3 in last year’s quarter-finals.

One thing I am more confident of backing in this one is a high number of 180s.

Van Gerwen may not have been particularly prolific over the season but across his three games so far he’s managed 0.42 per leg while Rydz is certainly no slouch at 0.36.

If we see at least seven sets, then I’d expect the pair to combine for over 20 maximums.

Predicted scoreline: 5-3

SELECTION: 1pt over 19.5 180s in MVG v Rydz at 13/10 (Boylesports)

• CLICK HERE to bet on MVG v Rydz with Sky Bet

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