Saturday's William Hill PDC World Darts Championship betting preview, free tips

Darts tips, best bets and predictions for Saturday's matches in the William Hill World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace.

Where to watch

Sky Sports Darts & Main Event, 12.30pm & 7pm Saturday

Best bets

Seigo Asada to beat Keegan Brown
1pt Evs Coral, Ladbrokes
Back this tip with Coral

Harry Ward to hit more 180s v Simon Whitlock
1pt 21-10 Betfair
Back this tip with Paddy Power

Adrian Lewis -1.5 on handicap v Cristo Reyes
1pt EvsCoral
Back this tip with Coral

Daryl Gurney to hit more 180s and win v Justin Pipe
2pts 10-11Betfair, Ladbrokes, Sky Bet
Back this tip with Paddy Power

Under 14.5 legs in Mensur Suljovic v Fallon Sherrock
2pts 5-6Paddy Power
Back this tip with Paddy Power

Josh Payne to beat Dimitri van den Bergh
2pts 11-10 bet365, Coral, Ladbrokes
Back this tip with bet365

Preview

Alexandra Palace will bow down to its new queen on Saturday night when Fallon Sherrock takes to the stage to play Mensur Suljovic in round two of the William Hill World Championship.

A decent darter last week, but a global superstar now, Sherrock will have it all to do against 11th seed Suljovic and the Milton Keynes arrowsmith is a massive 8-1 to beat the Austrian.

She will have the crowd on her side, just as she did on Tuesday night when she rocked the sporting world by pipping Ted Evetts 3-2 in a first-round nail-biter.

Sherrock has barely had time to sit down since that epic triumph but the 25-year-old is confident that, having made history, there is plenty more left in the tank.

“There’s nothing saying that I couldn’t up my average and beat Suljovic,” said the tournament 2,000-1 shot.

Keegan Brown v Seigo Asada
Head-to-head: No previous meetings

Seigo Asada was something of a joke when he first arrived on a British stage at the Lakeside five years ago but he is having the last laugh.

A soft-tipper of some repute in Asia, the Japanese player cut a muddled figure on his BDO World Championship debut.

Now, though, he looks a consistent classy act and has the game to beat Keegan Brown.

A World Cup semi-finalist this year, Asada thumped Mickey Mansell 3-0 in round one, hitting nine of 13 doubles, and is remembered fondly by the Ally Pally crowd for being the butt of James Wade’s embarrassing meltdown at this stage 12 months ago. Asada lost that night with a 97.5 average.

Brown has had a nothing year and will do well to keep Asada at bay.

Simon Whitlock v Harry Ward
Head-to-head: Tied at 1-1

Simon Whitlock kicked off this decade by reaching the final but he ends it in decline and looks vulnerable to Big H.

Admittedly, Harry Ward is going to have to up it after averaging just 84 despite hitting 45 per cent of his doubles in his 3-2 win over Madars Razma.

But punters can forgive Ward some debut nerves and expect him to improve.

The impression is that these two are fairly erratic – Whitlock this year has been a frustrating mix of the sublime and the ridiculous which makes him hard to fancy.

Ward boasts a better 180s-per-visit ratio than the Aussie on the Pro Tour, so looks a massive price in that market at 21-10.

Steve West v Ryan Searle
Head-to-head: West leads 3-2

Neither Steve West nor Ryan Searle has been in great form this year but both know how to hit 180s.

West ranks 13th in 180 percentages on the Pro Tour in 2019 while Searle thumped in nine during a disjointed 3-2 win over Robbie King in his opener. No wonder, then, that maximums are in at 8.5.

The game is hard to call because of their form. West did reach three floor semis and beat hippy Searle at the UK Open. Searle, however, won their other two meetings.

Adrian Lewis v Cristo Reyes
Head-to-head: Lewis leads 4-0

Adrian Lewis has won all four showdowns with Cristo Reyes – one of them this year – and can comfortably make it five out of five.

Reyes struggled to beat Lourence Ilagan and averages in the 80s won’t cut it against Jackpot, who is in better nick of late.

A winner on the Pro Tour in the summer, the two-time champ reached the Grand Slam quarters last month having beaten James Wade among others to get there.

Daryl Gurney v Justin Pipe
Head-to-head: Ties at 2-2

Daryl Gurney, a former quarter-finalist, should have the scoring power to overwhelm the nuggety Justin Pipe.

The Force threw well in periods against stubborn Slovenian Benjamin Pratnemer in a decent-quality opener, although he did have to survive match darts.

Gurney, however, is going to get far more looks at double and it’s hard to see Superchin being as generous as Pratnemer.

Glen Durrant v Damon Heta
Head-to-head: No previous meetings

This might not be a formality for three-time BDO world champion Glen Durrant on his debut.

Damon Heta beat allcomers in a shock World Series win down under in the summer and averaged the best part of 94 in a 3-0 win over Jose de Sousa in his opener, a victory made all the more creditable given that each set went to a decider.

What is beyond dispute is that Duzza is classy and should win, but backing a 3-0 correct score might not be wise.

Mensur Suljovic v Fallon Sherrock
Head-to-head: No previous meetings

And so to the big one with Mensur Suljovic having to fend off a hostile crowd and a capable opponent in his first match. And he’ll be doing that while trying to rediscover his own form.

Seasoned Lakeside watchers will agree that Fallon Sherrock has never thrown better than she did against Ted Evetts in that unforgettable success in round one and it’s quite possible that she’ll not throw that well ever again.

She hit the big scores – six 180s – and finished immaculately – 41 per cent. But she will have to repeat those heroics and that simply cannot be guaranteed especially now that she’s no longer a novelty and the pressure is on.

Suljovic really should have the firepower to win this well, probably in straight sets. The gnarled Austrian will certainly be less flaky than Evetts. The 3-0 win is a 4-6 shot so go under 14.5 legs with Paddy Power instead at 5-6.

Dimitri van den Bergh v Josh Payne
Head-to-head: Van den Bergh leads 7-4

Belgium's Dimitri van den Bergh is the favourite but Josh Payne looks the bet.

Van den Bergh made has made headlines at the Palace before but he has gone horribly off the boil in recent months.

Payne popped in a 96-plus average and dropped only two legs in a rout of Diogo Portela on Wednesday and that form ought to be more than good enough against an opponent who is struggling.

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