World Darts Championship quarter-final predictions and PDC darts betting tips

PDC darts tips, best bets and player analysis for the quarter-finals of the 2022 William Hill World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace, London.

When to watch

Sky Sports Arena & Main Event, 12.30pm Saturday

Best bets

Peter Wright to win world championship
1pt 10-3 general

Mervyn King to beat James Wade
1pt 6-4 bet365, Boyles

Luke Humphries to beat Gary Anderson
1pt 6-5 general

Quarter-finals preview

Ninety-six has become eight but the one thing that hasn't changed as we get set for quarter-finals day at the William Hill World Championship is Gerwyn Price's place in the betting.

The world number one and reigning champion, the 4-1 favourite at the off more than two weeks ago, is now a best-priced 9-4 as he readies himself to take to the Ally Pally stage for the last of the last-eight showdowns against Michael Smith.

It's one of four mouthwatering ties in a line-up featuring three world champions and it's one of those, Peter Wright, who right now looks like he's ready to reclaim the Sid Waddell Trophy.

The number two seed, who will have been locked in by his fans at around 7-1, is serenity itself, boasts a consistency seemingly on a different level to anyone else, and if you need to tuck into some fresh meat for the weekend, Snakey at 100-30 makes obvious sense.

He first has to get past Callan Rydz, one of two of the game's rising stars still in the hunt for the £500,000 first prize, Luke Humphries being the other. And there has been serious interest in those two as they have continued to impress.

But this is Wright territory now. The format is longer, the stakes higher, and this is where class tells. Snakebite is chucking like the man who simply blitzed a world-class field at the Matchplay in the summer.

James Wade v Mervyn King

Head-to-head: King leads 28-24

First up is a battle of the old timers, two men with a combined 46 world championship appearances between them.

Wade, as the number four seed, should be here and his progress has been routine, although he was poor against Maik Kuivenhoven, was handed a bye to get past Covid victim Vincent van der Voort and then exploited a no-show from Martijn Kleermaker on Thursday.

King, seeded 21 and for many years portrayed as the bete noire of darts crowds everywhere, seemed to win the masses over during his epic 4-3 win over Raymond Smith, and that meant the world to the Fenlander. It also confirmed he could stand the heat in an epic.

Two facts to note. Wade has got this far without hitting a single 180, which is extraordinary in itself. He's 11-4 to nail the 180s matchbet.

Second, and far more importantly, King has won their last seven meetings, including October's first-round duel at the World Series where he produced an out-of-this-world 115 average in a 6-0 whitewash.

Luke Humphries v Gary Anderson

H2H: 1-1

First things first, it's pretty hard to imagine these two won't between them smash through the 17.5 180s mark. They combined for 21 in round four and this match could well go past seven sets.

As for the winner, Cool Hand Luke does look the part and ready to take the next step. He has the scoring power and has beaten Anderson on the big stage, in last year's Premier League.

Both men can blow searingly hot but do have lulls. There really doesn't look much between them so the outsider gets the nod.

Peter Wright v Callan Rydz

H2H: Wright leads 4-1

Callan Rydz has been one of the stars of the Palace, looking full of confidence during massacres of Brendan Dolan, Nathan Aspinall and Alan Soutar. Against three talented opponents he has dropped just a solitary set.

Now, though, he comes under pressure. Serious pressure from an opponent who will simply not give an inch having finally settled upon a set of darts which appear to be working.

Wright looked utterly unfazed falling 2-0 down to Damon Heta because he backed himself to hit back. Which he did. And he made light work of Ryan Searle, one of the stars of 2021.

Rydz, the only unseeded player left in, is learning his trade fast and is heading for the stars, but it might not be this weekend.

Gerwyn Price v Michael Smith

H2H: Smith leads 14-13

Michael Smith is a tungsten titan of two faces. But which will we see in the tie of the night?

The Smith who beat Jonny Clayton in a sumptuous thriller in round four and who reached the final a few years back to prove that he has it in him? Or the Smith who is still unbelievably without a ranking title, because he simply nods off too often in big games and finds ways to throw matches away?

The question is, how much would you trust him to beat Gezzy, the best player in the world and a man who will fight to his last breath? Smith will have the crowd behind him but he hasn't beaten Price in their last nine meetings and the price isn't tempting enough.

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