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World Championship Final Rematch to Start Us Off! - PL Night 1 Preview
Premier League Night 1 Preview

World Championship Final Rematch to Start Us Off! - PL Night 1 Preview

02 February, 2023

The 2023 Premier League commences for another year, as eight of the best Professional Darts Corporation’s players prepare to battle it out for a total prize pot of £275,000 over 17 different venues across the UK, Germany, Ireland and Holland.

Michael van Gerwen is the defending champion after he beat Joe Cullen 11-10 last year in Berlin, to win the competition for the sixth time in his career. One more triumph will make him the tournament’s most successful player, with the Green Machine and the legendary Phil Taylor tied with six Premier League titles a piece, after MvG made his debut back in 2013.

Mighty Mike faces a rematch with World Number 1 Michael Smith on the opening night in Belfast, following their last meeting in the Final of the recent World Darts Championship at the Ally Pally.

Bully Boy found the first nine darter in North London in what was the best leg the sport has witnessed, as the man from St Helens comes into this year’s Premier League as the reigning World Champion for the first time.

Van Gerwen loves the Premier League, only failing to finish top of the pile on two separate occasions including last year. The Dutchman will also want revenge for what happened in the capital a month ago, with MVG beating Rob Cross 7-2 back on the opening night of the 2018 Premier League in Dublin, after Voltage had just got his hands on the Sid Waddell trophy.

World Number 4 Gerwyn Price claimed glory in the Northern Irish capital last year, including two nine darters against Michael van Gerwen and James Wade, as he picked up the £10,000 winners prize and the crucial five points for his league position.

The Iceman has never won the Premier League in his career, missing out on a place in the Play Offs 12 months ago, despite victories in Sheffield and Belfast. The Welshman lost in the Second Round of the recent Masters, losing to Dirk van Duijvenbode in Milton Keynes.

Price has responded well after the controversy of the World Championship, reaching two Finals on the World Series stage in Bahrain and Denmark. The Red Dragon star will face Nathan Aspinall in the last Quarter Final on the opening night, as the former World Champion looks to start strong in this year’s Premier League.

World Number 2 Peter Wright will also be looking for his very first win in the competition, agonisingly missing match darts back in the 2017 Final to beat Michael van Gerwen at the O2 Arena.

Snakebite has already returned to the winner’s circle in 2023, beating Gerwyn Price to win the Nordic Masters in Copenhagen last month. The Scotsman narrowly missed out on the recent Masters, losing a last leg decider to Rob Cross 11-10 in the Semi Finals at the Marshall Arena.

Wright will face the recent Masters winner Chris Dobey in his opening match of this year’s Premier League, with Hollywood beating Voltage in the Final to secure his spot in this year’s competition, like Joe Cullen did twelve months ago when he beat Dave Chisnall.

Jonny Clayton who topped the Premier League last year, will open this year’s tournament as he faces a rematch with Dimitri van den Bergh, after the pair met in the Quarter Finals of this year’s World Championship.

The Ferret accustomed himself to the new look format, becoming the only player in 2022 to win 4 different nights as he finished his league campaign on 40 points, 9 clear of Michael van Gerwen in 2nd.

The Red Dragon player won in Scotland twice, (Aberdeen and Glasgow) as well as Liverpool on the second night and Birmingham on the eighth, beating James Wade in the Final to continue his dominance in the darting roadshow.

The 2023 Premier League starts from 7pm live on Sky Sports, for the start of the weekly competition in Belfast. Dimitri van den Bergh returns for his second attempt in the competition, facing World Number 7 Jonny Clayton for the right to face either Michael Smith or Michael van Gerwen in the Semis.

By Harry Masterson

 

2023 Premier League: Night 1 Order of Play

 

Quarter Finals:

Dimitri van den Bergh v Jonny Clayton

Michael Smith v Michael van Gerwen

Peter Wright v Chris Dobey

Nathan Aspinall v Gerwyn Price

 

Semi Finals:

Van den Bergh/ Clayton v Smith/ Van Gerwen

Wright/ Dobey v Aspinall/ Price

 

Final:

Winner of SF1 v Winner of SF2


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